Brexit will long be remembered, for the arguments, debates, promises and the lies.

Many people who voted ‘Leave’ now regret it. Others say the whole thing was a nightmare, a disaster that could wreck the country. Well, say the positive people, get on with it.

In the turmoil that followed, Theresa May launched her national campaign to become Leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister.

She said, “Our country needs strong, proven leadership – to steer us through this time of economic and political uncertainty, and to negotiate the best deal for Britain as we leave the EU and forge a new role for ourselves in the world. Because Brexit means Brexit and we’re going to make a success of it…There will be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it by the back door, and no second referendum. The country voted to leave the European Union, and as Prime Minister I will make sure that we leave the European Union.”

So, let’s stop wondering. Mrs May has moved on to start her new job and we need to keep up.

What are her views and policies on housing? It’s a little early to tell, but we do know that she voted against introducing Mansion Tax and against a ban on letting agents charging tenants fees, as recorded on TheyWorkForYou.com.

And she has already admitted that, “…we need to do far more to get more houses built. Because unless we deal with the housing deficit, we will see house prices keep on rising. Young people will find it even harder to afford their own home. The divide between those who inherit wealth and those who don’t will become more pronounced. And more and more of the country’s money will go into expensive housing instead of more productive investments that generate more economic growth.” Yes indeed.

NEW HOUSING MINISTER

Property professionals are already making their views plain to the new Minister for Housing and Planning, Gavin Barwell. “Uncertain times call for pragmatism and flexibility,” the Chief Executive of the National Housing Federation (NHF), David Orr, said on 18th July. “Today, the sector puts forward a plan of action to keep the nation building and tackle the housing crisis. It is a plan that comes at no extra cost to the taxpayer and one that will improve the life chances of hundreds of thousands of working people in this country.”

That plan calls on the Government to allow housing associations to use some of the £7billion set aside for government discounted ownership schemes to build affordable homes to rent or buy.

Mr Orr said that NHF members need the support that private developers have, ”Billions have been allocated to encourage largely private developers to offer discounted starter homes for first-time buyers and shared ownership products.”

Housing Minister Gavin Barwell responde, saying that decisions on affordable housing will be made by the Chancellor in his Budget, but agreed, “We need a mix of tenures – a mix of offers.”

Which is what Brandon Lewis MP, then Minister for Housing, said at The Negotiator Conference in November 2015. And again, on 22nd March 2016, when he said, “We are … very conscious that we have not built enough homes in this country year on year for many decades … We have been very clear that we want to be very ambitious. We want to deliver homes across all tenures. We want to drive home ownership up as well. Working to deliver one million homes in this Parliament is a target we should be very ambitious about, and go beyond, if we can.”

Government’s ambition to build 1m homes by the end of this Parliament is welcome, but it must be matched by action on a much larger scale!

However, it isn’t enough to be ambitious, and we don’t need ‘…if we can’ we need ‘We will!’ And the House of Lords Select Committee on housing, agrees, in its report published on 15th July, saying, “We must build enough homes to make housing more affordable for everyone – to rent or to buy. Aspirant homeowners who are unable to afford a deposit pay substantial proportions of their income on rent; families on waiting lists for social housing contend with insecure tenancies and rogue landlords.

“The Government is aiming to build one million homes in England by the end of this Parliament.

“The ambition is welcome but must be matched by appropriate action on a much larger scale than currently envisaged and across all tenures…To meet demand and have a moderating effect on house prices, at least 300,000 homes every year need to be built.”

Will Gavin Barwell make it happen?