Planning 'revolution' scales back London housing target

Angela Rayner’s planning “revolution” will see London’s housebuilding target slashed by 20,000 homes, despite a wider push to boost the number of houses being built each year.

- MILLIE COOKE

The deputy prime minister and housing secretary unveiled a major overhaul of the planning system today, which will see all councils in England given new, mandatory housing targets as part of a plan to deliver 1.5 million more homes in the UK.

She warned that Britain is facing the “most acute housing crisis in living memory”, claiming that the number of new homes is set to drop below 200,000 this year – something Ms Rayner dubbed “unforgivable”.

The overall housing target for the UK will increase to 370,000, replacing the previous Tory government’s advisory target of 300,000 homes per year. However, government officials said London’s target would fall from 100,000 homes per year to 80,000.

Ms Rayner claimed the previous figure was “absolute nonsense” and an “arbitrary figure”, denying that the government is “lowering our ambition for London”.

But Priced Out, a group campaigning for more affordable homes, warned that London is already “the most unaffordable place in the country”.

Freddie Poser, the organisation’s executive director, said: “Rayner has stuck to her ambition to get housebuilding moving and raised the national target to 370,000 which is very welcome. It is a shame to see a 20 per cent drop in the London target proposed – this is exactly where we should be building homes.

“London is the most unaffordable place in the country, new homes in the city would have an outsized impact on solving the housing shortage. PricedOut will be responding to the consultation to recommend the government keep the target at 100,000.”

The new rules set out in the Commons yesterday will reverse the decision made last year to water down housing targets, which saw them become advisory, instead making them mandatory for local governments.