Govt Commits To Housebuilding Target

The government has confirmed it is still committed to building 300,000 new houses a year, despite the difficult economic climate. 

Former prime minister Liz Truss recently announced plans to end what she called the “Whitehall-inspired Stalinist housing targets”. 

However, housing secretary Michael Gove has done a u-turn and confirmed that the target still remains a government priority, the Telegraph reported. 

Speaking with BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuennssberg: “No-one can deny that it’s going to be made more difficult because of the economic circumstances that we face.”

He noted that the cost of materials has increased, there have been issues with global supply chains, and there is currently a lack of labourers, making it difficult for the government to meet its ambitious targets. 

However, Mr Gove noted: “we need to build more homes for people to own, we also need to build more homes for social rent, we need to build more council houses, more housing association homes.”

The goals were initially set by former chancellor Philip Hammond in 2017, and was included in the 2019 Conservative manifesto. 

Building 300,000 homes per year by the mid-2020s was aimed at increasing housing affordability and making it easier for people to get on the property ladder. 

However, the government has failed to hit the target so far, with just 243,200 new homes lodged in the year leading to June 2022. Between 2020 and 2021, there were 216,490 additional dwellings. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused disruptions to housebuilding over the last couple of years, as construction sites were closed for a proportion of 2020. Consequently, the figures in 2020-21 were 11 per cent below what they were the year before. 

During her short stint in power, Ms Truss made it known she did not support the housing targets, saying: “I think that’s the wrong way to generate economic growth.”

Former housing minister Lee Rowley described the target as “dead in the water” at the time of her leadership. 

Despite this, Mr Gove was clear the objectives are still in place, with the intention to make “affordable, plentiful housing” for the next generation, as a way to encourage them to believe in capitalism and become Conservative voters. 

He also said in the interview that the new developments need the consent of the local community, have the right infrastructure, protect the environment, and be allocated fairly, taking into account changes in the population. 

Chief executive of Barratt Developments David Thomas agrees with Mr Gove about housebuilding helping to give a much-needed boost to the UK economy. 

He said it will not only bring growth, investment, jobs and skills, but also an investment of £11 billion. 

In an article in the Daily Express, Mr Thomas wrote: “The lack of housebuilding is a critical issue for the health of the country’s economy.”

The developer noted that building 100,000 homes increases gross domestic profit by one per cent, creates 250,000 jobs, and gives business to tens of thousands of suppliers and sub-contractors. 

Therefore, he believes the government’s targets should remain high, as this will provide a “massive boost to the country, right when we need it most”. 

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