Britain has an “acute housing crisis’… says Housing Minister
"We have an acute and entrenched housing crisis in this country," says the Minister of State for Housing and Planning Matthew Pennycook.
Britain has an “acute and entrenched housing crisis”, the housing minister has said.
Speaking on Radio 4’s Today Programme, Matthew Pennycook revealed that the Government needed “do more” to solve the crisis.
In particular, he said a massive council homes building programme is required.
However, he declined to specify exactly when spades in the ground would be seen, saying it would depend on each individual provider.
We have an acute and entrenched housing crisis in this country. We have got to do more.”
Last year, he claimed that 64,000 new council homes were delivered, the highest rate since 2014 to 2015.
He said: “Council house building fell off a cliff in the 1980s due to Right to Buy. We have done a lot to reinvigorate council house building but we have got to more.
“We are making more funding available through our £39billion Social and Affordable Housing Programme.
“The Prime Minister wants to see the biggest council homes drive since rates fell off in the early 1980s.”
He added: “Housing targets are in place and they have an important role. We have an acute and entrenched housing crisis in this country. We have got to do more.
“Funding is going out through the door. It will see homes delivered.”
He explained that the current injection of grant funding will help private market sites build out and “get things moving”.
House building
Speaking about the 1.5 million building market target, he described it as a “stretching target”.
It follows Angela Rayner speaking on the same radio programme earlier this month, when she has compared meeting the target to build 1.5 million new homes like her “running the marathon in under five hours”.
She said: “I’m going to keep the 1.5 million target, but it is like me saying that I’m going to run the London Marathon in under five hours. That would be a real challenge for me, but I’ll do it.
“I’m straight-talking, 1.5 million homes is a difficult target. I made the target. But I’m going to keep the target and I’m not going to be defeated.”
