For the first time in a long time the three main parties are proposing very different policies. Here are 7 things you need to know about what they are saying on housing and planning.
1. Housing numbers
The number games continues with all three main parties setting ambitions targets on housebuilding. The Conservative manifesto recommits the party to meet its commitment to build a million homes by 2020 and in addition pledges to deliver half a million more by the end of 2022. The Labour manifesto commits to building over a million new homes, including at least 100,000 new council and housing association homes a year. Finally, the Liberal Democrat manifesto includes a pledge to reach a target of 300,000 homes a year by 2022, including half a million affordable and energy efficient homes.
2. The role of the state in housebuilding
We are starting to see a post-Thatcherite consensus on the role of the state in housebuilding. The Labour manifesto reinforces the role of councils and housing associations in delivering new homes. Parking their tanks squarely on Labour’s lawn, the Conservatives have said they will support ambitious local authorities and housing associations in building a new generation of council homes. Under the proposed deals the party would give funds and make available the housebuilding capability from the Homes and Communities Agency. Councils would be able to assemble land, marrying up with reformed compulsory purchase rules. However, in return the deals would require a proportion of the social homes built to be sold after ten to fifteen years.
3. Right to Buy extension to housing associations
The Conservative Party manifesto fails to mention the Right to Buy extension to housing associations suggesting that the former flagship policy, like Starter Homes, is no longer a top-priority for a May administration. Meanwhile, Labour have pledged to scrap Right to Buy altogether and the Liberal Democrats have pledged to end the voluntary Right to Buy pilots that sell off housing association homes and the associated high-value asset levy. The Liberal Democrats would instead introduce a new rent to own policy.
4. The Green Belt
All parties are committed to protecting the Green Belt – no surprise here!
5. Homelessness and rough sleeping
All major parties have woken up to the problem of rough sleeping in our society. The Labour Party has pledged to make an additional 4,000 homes available for rough sleepers in order to end homelessness. The Conservatives pledge to enact the provisions within the Homelessness Reduction Act (such as a duty on all local authorities to relieve homelessness and a new duty on public services to notify a local authority if they come into contact with someone they think may be homeless or at risk of becoming homeless), halve rough sleeping over the course of the next parliament, and eliminate it altogether by 2027. Finally, the Liberal Democrats have pledged to pump £60 million into tackling homelessness in the UK.
6. Planning reform
Maintaining the status quo seems to be the order of the day, with the Conservatives recommitting to the planned reforms set out in the Housing White Paper. Meanwhile, the focus for Labour and the Liberal Democrats centres broadly on diversifying the supply of new housing.
It seems yet again that all of the main parties fail to put forward a bold vision to reforming the UKs planning system in order to increase the number of new homes required.
7. Digital first and Digital Land
A favourite theme of ours here at Iceni, the Conservative manifesto has pledged to use digital technology to release value from land. This would include combining the relevant parts of HM Land Registry, Ordnance Survey, the Valuation Office Agency, the Hydrographic Office and Geological Survey to create a comprehensive geospatial data body within government. This new body would seek to set the standards to digitise the planning process and help create the most comprehensive digital map of Britain to date.