Surveyors tell next UK government, homes must be ‘greener and cheaper’
10-point roadmap ahead of a looming General Election calls for government to create safe, sustainable and affordable homes for all to solve housing crisis.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is calling for an increase in the supply of rented homes as well as a joined-up quality and sustainability housing strategy in the lead up to the next General Election.
The Neg reported earlier this week how RICS (main picture) had slammed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s u-turn on EPC minimum standards.
Now it is publishing a 10-point manifesto roadmap which focusses on creating safe, sustainable and affordable homes for all; building safety and future skills for a sustainable built environment.
HOUSING DELIVERY
Other key asks within Empowering a Sustainable Future include a review of skills shortages to tackle targets and to hit housing targets with a housing delivery strategy.
It also calls for the next government to action the recommendations from last year’s RICS Decarbonising UK Real Estate policy that calls for reform to how building performance and EPCs are presented.
The call to action comes as the UK’s built and natural environments face large-scale challenges ranging from climate change to a cost-of-living crisis adding to the woes of a housing sector suffering a supply shortage.
CRITICAL CHALLENGES
Justin Young (main picture), RICS Chief Executive, says: “RICS advocates policies with solutions to some of the most critical challenges of our time.
“The public needs safe, sustainable, energy-efficient and affordable homes; businesses need high-quality commercial spaces that align with the decentralised digital economy, while the industry needs a more robust pipeline of diverse talent that fulfils the skills demands of the sector so that it can deliver its goals.”
And he adds: “The RICS manifesto provides food for thought for the parties as they develop their policy platforms for the next General Election, and we look forward to engaging with their policy teams at the upcoming party conferences.”
A senior RICS delegation will present the manifesto and its key messages at the upcoming Conservative Party and Labour Party conferences on 1 – 4 October and 8 – 11 October, respectively.
