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Theresa May’s speech suggests the government now trusts housing associations, but that doesn’t mean it is time to relax, writes Emma Maier
If the National Housing Federation did prime ministerial speeches, they may very well sound like Theresa May’s address to the National Housing Summit.
She could not have been clearer: “This government values housing associations.” They “carry forward the social justice mission” of the sector’s Victorian pioneers and are “the keepers of the legacy”, she said, praising their “vision, determination and the courage”.
Associations have the “discipline, rigour and management qualities of the serious multimillion pound businesses”, she added. She spoke of associations’ role in development but also of maintaining homes and of mixed-tenure communities.
One delegate summed up the mood: “We can’t believe our ears.”
The warm words come almost three years to the day after then-prime minister David Cameron launched an all-out attack on associations, which he described as inefficient, while then-chancellor George Osborne laid into their development record.
Ms May herself underlined the shift in position: “For too long, your work has gone unrecognised and underappreciated at the highest levels. But no longer.”
In another sideways reference to the previous administration, the prime minister went on to acknowledge that recent governments have sidelined social housing, saying it had “at best taken for granted, at worst actively undermined”. She called out stigma and prejudice.
It was this rhetoric, rather than the £2bn funding for long-term partnerships, that dominated the thoughts of delegates watching the landmark speech. And with good reason. Ms May’s sentiments are unlike anything we have heard from a Conservative government for many decades. Just as Mr Cameron’s assault in 2015 ushered in a period of pain for housing associations, Ms May’s warm words set the tone for the next policy era.
“The spotlight will be firmly trained on housing associations performance”
The battle to become a trusted partner of government has been won for now. But associations can’t rest easy. “You asked, we delivered,” she told delegates. “Now, I have something to ask of you.”
She is asking for more homes. She is looking for quality as well as quantity, and a shift away from buying Section 106 properties from volume housebuilders towards large-scale strategic developments. She is asking for housing associations to continue developing throughout the next recession.
With league tables in the offing, the spotlight will be firmly trained on housing associations performance against these objectives.
Ms May is keen to give the impression that she has “delivered” and likes to talk about her government taking a “muscular” approach to housing policy. In reality, heading a minority government that it at war with itself constrains her ability to make concrete policy commitments. She remains locked in battle with the Treasury. As a result, there remain many unanswered questions.
What will the £2bn long-term partnerships offer look like? How will it fit into the post-2022 funding programme? How will associations building through the next downturn if they continue to be reliant on cross-subsidy?
“The government will need to follow through with solid policy and funding if it is to achieve Ms May’s ambition”
How much support will there be for social rented housing specifically? How does regeneration fit into Ms May’s vision to tackle stigma and raise quality?
What of the impact of the welfare reform agenda on stigmatisation of social housing tenants? Perhaps the greatest unknown is how long her premiership will last, and whether her successors will take her vision forward.
For now, the unprecedented political rhetoric is welcome. The government will need to follow through with solid policy and funding if it is to achieve Ms May’s ambition of offering sufficient certainty to support a shift in housing delivery.
Emma Maier, editor, Inside Housing
All our coverage of Theresa May's historic speech on 19 September, 2018, in one place:
Orr: 'penny has dropped' for government on housing The outgoing chief executive of the National Housing Federation gives his take on May's speech
LGA warns May’s focus on associations ’misses the point’ about council-led building Reaction to the announcements from Lord Gary Porter, chair of the Local Government Association
Sector leaders hail ‘huge significance’ of May’s NHF speech Housing figures welcome the Prime Minister’s speech to the National Housing Federation’s annual conference in London
May’s speech shows a significant change in attitude towards the sector When was the last time a Conservative prime minister made a speech more favourable to social housing?, asks Jules Birch
In full: Theresa May’s speech to the National Housing Summit The full text of the Prime Minister’s historic speech
Theresa May throws support behind housing associations in landmark speech Read more about Theresa May’s speech which signalled a change in tone from the government towards housing associations
May’s new £2bn funding will not be available until 2022 Homes England clarifies the timescale for allocation of the new money promised by the Prime Minister
Morning Briefing: Labour hits back at May’s £2bn housing pledgeShadow housing secretary John Healey says May’s pledges are not enough
May to announce £2bn for strategic partnerships with associations at NHF conference The details released overnight ahead of the speech