The industry reacts to the reforms to the housing system planned by the UK government.
This reform could bring significant changes to the UK housing system.
The UK government signaled its intention to reform and modernize the housing system yesterday when the Queen delivered a speech to reopen Parliament.
Noted for its brevity, the Queen’s speech outlined around thirty new laws in just less than ten minutes.
On housing, the UK head of state said there would be: “Laws will be introduced to modernize the planning system so that more houses can be built, along with legislation to end land rents.”
Despite the brief mention, there were many comments from across the industry. Stephanie Boyce, president of The Law Society, said hasty reforms would not be sustainable and would risk uncertainty, adding that more clarity was needed.
She added: “Meeting housing delivery targets should not come at the expense of people (probably the most vulnerable in society) living in inadequate accommodation; any attempt to mitigate the planning process must ensure that the protections that offers do not miss. ”
Melanie Leech, executive director of the British Property Federation, said the plans would be a “sea change” in how local authorities plan and deliver new homes. But he added: “One of the most significant contradictions in government policy since 2010 is that spending on the English planning system has been cut by 55 percent, the most significant drop in all council activities, while housing targets over the same period they have increased by 50 percent to 300,000. Reforms to local plans will only be as good as the resources behind them. ”
Others were more cynical. Nick Sanderson, CEO of Audley Group, said the government should focus specifically on the type of housing needed, not just the concept of building new homes.
Sanderson added: “You have to pay attention to the type of housing you need to build because the number of homes in the UK is not the problem. A report from the Business School found that there will be 20 million surplus rooms in this country by 2040, many in homes owned by people who wanted to downsize. It is evident where the focus of radical planning reform should be, and that is in specialized housing with care properties where there is a severe shortage of supply. “
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