Government injects cash to speed up house building
Ministers are targeting brownfield sites to boost new home figures, and measures to accelerate planning decisions.
The Government has attempted to kickstart its housebuilding plans with investment to use brownfield sites and speed up planning decisions.
Ministers have allocated £800 million to “unlock” up to 56,000 new homes in towns and cities.
Michael Gove, the Levelling Up Secretary, also announced the regeneration of areas in Central London, Leeds and Cambridge.
A ‘Docklands 2.0’ vision for East London with up to 65,000 homes across multiple sites including Thamesmead, Beckton and Silvertown, was unveiled.
In Leeds, the Government will accelerate work in the ‘city rim’, including the South Bank and Innovation Arc, potentially delivering up to 20,000 new homes here within 10 years.
Speed up
Changes to the planning system “will speed up new developments” and clear backlogs.
A new fund of £24 million to scale up local planning capacity, and an extra £13.5 million to set up a new “super-squad” of experts to support large scale development projects.
Developers’ fees are to be increased to ensure all planning departments are better resourced.
Gove also outlined plans to make Barrow ‘a new powerhouse of the North’, with thousands of new homes.
Industry reaction

Charles Jordan, head of new homes at Winkworth, says: “We still need more homes to be delivered but it’s a step in the right direction.
“The increased housing availability may help make housing more affordable and accessible to a broader section of the population.
“Changes to the planning system like the £24m planning skills delivery fund is also good news. A predictable and efficient planning system improves business confidence which the UK needs right now.”
Now is the time for pragmatic action, not more talk.”

Oli Sherlock, director of insurance, Goodlord, says: “If we want to ease the pressure on the rental sector, we desperately need more homes to be built.
“However, we need targets and pledges to translate into bricks and mortar. We’ve neglected our housing market for far too long – now is the time for pragmatic action, not more talk.”