"based around large amounts of social housing with lifelong tenure." Exactly. New builds are everywhere we look today, estate after estate. No social housing. If you have nothing, you can't buy a £350,000 home. There are plenty of empty high streets and business parks that could be repurposed too.
I hear cries of 'this cant happen' when it's happening all around us. Good point that the immigration thing is part fired by pressure for space (housing stock) No idea where the money or even the builders will come from but I think I now see that it's got to happen or we will get 'Reform' next.
As with UKIP, Reform will eventually implode under the pressure of the counter egos at the top. The Tories will mop up the pieces by lurching right and, in doing so, become increasingly unpalatable to much of the UK
Reform or an extreme right wing Conservative Government will be much the same thing. We have to somehow make sure that this Labour Government succeeds. I am getting old now and I have never seen politics in such a perilous place in the UK.
Don't "rivals" need to present alternative plans in order to be taken seriously by the press? Ah that's right, they can just talk shite and the press refuses to call it out.
Private property developers are the only people building houses. Unless the state is going to become a house builder this is where we are. I just don’t see how that is possible in the time frames available. At least now, under Labour, we are beginning to see the size of the problem.
Building houses without property ownership reform is like bailing out a ship with a hole in the bottom. Labour isn't seriously interested in solving the problem, they're interested in grabbing a few cheap headlines.
I agree there has to be some ownership reform and possibly the growth of a new sector. But we also need to recognise where the starting point is. There is nothing to suggest, at the moment anyway, that Starmer and Rayner are short term politicians.
What is being planned? More affordable rentals with better protection for the renter, more affordable/social housing with facilities to build communities. I take it that you are no fan of the Labour Party but they have inherited a chaotic mess.
If housing is indeed the main electoral issue at the main election Labour has v little time to make the necessary changes to impact new builds due to the time lags. And I don't mean in the planning system.
You can do a lot in 5 years. They may only start to make headway by year 4-5, but it needs to be rocket fuel energy right now. I just have a feeling this gov will dither on the really uncomfortable decisions.
Good repost. I don’t think dithering is the problem. Angela Rayner for one has lots of energy and focus on this. It will be national against local/private interests and resources to build. At least a start is being made. Willing to be unpopular for a time is going to help here.
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Get ready for stories about missed targets in 5 4 3 2 ....
Won't do a damn thing for the housing 'shortage' though.
Short term politicians build houses before reforming property ownership laws.
Short term politicians pump money into the pockets of private developers.
Short term politicians build houses before building the infrastructure to cope with the increased population in rural areas.