Cabinet’s missing minister

Housing’s spell at the top-table of British politics is over. Unlike his four immediate predecessors, the new housing minister, Grant Shapps, will not be able to attend cabinet meetings as a matter of course.

Having served as shadow housing minister since 2007 Mr Shapps brings bags of experience to his new job in the coalition government.

Despite this some critics suggest the loss of a cabinet position signifies a downgrading of housing within government. So what have previous housing ministers achieved with their seat and what difference will the change make?

A great cause

In June 2007 then prime minister Gordon Brown said his new housing minister Yvette Cooper could attend every cabinet meeting - regardless of whether housing was on the agenda. At the time Mr Brown said a national debate about the future of housing could make ‘affordable housing for all one of the great causes of our time’. Ms Cooper was the first housing minister to get a seat at cabinet since 1970 and was brought in as the government unveiled a record £8 billion housing budget in its comprehensive spending review for 2008/11. Her successors Caroline Flint, Margaret Beckett and John Healey, who had to wrestle with the effects of recession and the credit crunch, also had a seat at the table.

The most recent former housing minister John Healey says this prominence was ‘crucial’. ‘In order to influence government at the centre you have to be at the centre of government. You have to be at the cabinet to make your arguments for housing as part of bigger discussions of policy priorities and financial pressures otherwise you miss the big discussions and get left out of the big decisions.’

He says being a cabinet member meant he could show that support for those struggling with their mortgages was central to the government’s response to the recession. The government’s £1.5 billion housing pledge used unspent funding from other departments so sitting around a table with the secretaries of state for those areas helped him to negotiate the deal, he states. Normally ministers of state would have to negotiate with others of similar rank.

In his eyes removing the cabinet seat is a ‘big downgrading of housing’. He adds: ‘Grant Shapps is doing a job which is much more important than his prime minister recognises.’

Joint responsiblity

Abigail Davies, head of policy at the Chartered Institute of Housing, says the attitude of the new communities and local government secretary Eric Pickles’ towards housing will be crucial given the absence of Mr Shapps.

‘It is very important to have a voice for housing in the cabinet particularly given the importance of stressing a link between housing and other public policy issues at the moment. If Pickles as secretary of state takes that role on then that is fine.’ She points out that the role of being housing’s advocate has been left to housing ministers, rather than secretaries of state in the past. ‘If that is still the case then there will be disadvantage to the sector [in not having the housing minister in cabinet],’ she adds.

The relationship a minister has with movers and shakers in central government is also much more important than a seat round the cabinet table, according to one housing lobbyist. He points out that two of the last four housing ministers who arguably had most influence with Downing Street - Yvette Cooper and John Healey - were known as supporters of Mr Brown. Some say it was their relationship with the former prime minister allied with their talents which gained them influence.

Mr Healey, though, feels that having a prior working relationship with Mr Brown made no difference to getting decisions through government. He does, however, think his previous experience as local government minister and financial secretary to the Treasury did help him form the terms of the deal for abolition of the housing revenue account subsidy system.

A communities and local government spokesperson said: ‘Communities secretary Eric Pickles is the voice for housing at cabinet. He has overall responsibility for all the department’s policies and is working closely with housing minister Grant Shapps. Getting the housing market moving, building more homes and providing a roof over the head of the needy are key priorities for the new government.’

Gordon Brown’s four housing ministers certainly had to wrestle with some high profile housing issues in their time in office. As well as presiding over record funding for housing, Ms Cooper also oversaw the housing and regeneration bill which created the Tenant Services Authority and Homes and Communities Agency.

Mr Healey launched a consultation to reform the Byzantine council housing finance system as well as unveiling the £1.5 billion housing pledge. Ms Flint launched £1 billion of funding including mortgage rescue schemes while Ms Beckett announced more than £600 million of spending in her stint in the job.

The bigger picture

Henry Gregg, public affairs manager at the National Housing Federation says he is unsurprised this position has now changed.

‘It is not a usual situation for a minister of state to attend cabinet; it reflects the agenda at the time because there was such a high level of funding in the comprehensive spending review period and housing became a big issue. I think housing will be an important issue and Mr Shapps should be able to do what he needs to do [without attending cabinet].’

Does the lack of a cabinet attendance in Mr Shapps’ role indicate that housing is less of a priority for the new government? Most housing policy experts think the lack of a mention for housing in coalition agreement or in the televised debates between the three party leaders are a better indicator of housing’s status than whether it has a seat in the cabinet.

The housing lobbyist says: ‘They will have a budget in 50 days. We have worries about housing’s position within that.’ Mr Shapps has shown commitment to the sector but had said little about policy so far, he adds.

The Budget on 22 June will provide the first major indication, therefore, about whether the loss of the cabinet seat signifies a wider downgrading of housing within the new government.

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