You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
Sadiq Khan has urged Philip Hammond to find an extra £1bn every year for affordable housing in the capital at next month’s Budget.
The mayor of London called on the chancellor to restore the size of the affordable homes fund to 2009/10 levels to tackle a housing “crisis”.
Fresh figures published by City Hall show that 66,000 new homes are needed every year to meet demand. Two-thirds of these (65%) need to be available below market rate, according to the strategic housing market assessment.
This would require a huge increase in affordable housing; currently the mayor’s office requires 35% affordable housing on sites – or 50% on public land – to receive faster planning permission.
The mayor’s office said government funding for affordable homes in the capital was £1.75bn per year under the last Labour government, and currently stood between £0.5bn and £0.7bn per annum.
“City Hall modelling suggests a requirement for the government to increase funding for affordable housing alone in London to around £2.7bn a year,” said the mayor’s office in a statement.
“The mayor is calling on the government to immediately restore affordable housing investment to 2009/10 levels at the Budget on 22 November, alongside a long-term commitment to increasing funding to the levels needed to meet London’s need.”
Mr Khan today published the housing delivery targets for each London borough that will feature in his London Plan when it is released in draft form in November.
Newham will be told to build 38,500 homes over 10 years, and Tower Hamlets 35,110. At the other end of the scale the City of London will have a target of 1,460 while Kensington and Chelsea will have to build 4,880.
Half of each borough’s totals will have to be affordable.
Mr Khan said: “The housing crisis is a major factor in the high cost of living in the capital, as well as putting homeownership out of the reach of many young Londoners who fear they will never get a foot on the property ladder. In the worst cases it can affect social cohesion, cause poor health, and plunge residents into poverty.
“This government keeps saying it understands the scale of London’s housing crisis, but these statistics prove it is just tinkering around the edges. It’s time for the prime minister to match her words with action and use the Budget to commit to the profound increase in investment and powers London needs to tackle this crisis once and for all.”
Brendan Sarsfield, chief executive of Peabody, said the housing demand figures “are a reminder of the monumental housing challenge facing Londoners”.
He added: “A secure home at a price people can afford is increasingly out of reach for many people. This is an unsustainable situation and radical action is needed.
“Peabody is playing its part to help tackle the crisis, doubling our development pipeline through joint ventures, new land deals, and more investment. There is also space for 20,000 new homes in Thamesmead with the right transport infrastructure.
“Working with the mayor, all areas of government and the private sector, housing associations are ready to ramp up the supply of high quality, genuinely affordable homes to cope with the needs of our growing city.”
Borough |
Housing delivery target |
Annual target |
Barking and Dagenham |
22,640 |
2,264 |
Barnet |
31,340 |
3,134 |
Bexley |
12,450 |
1,245 |
Brent |
29,150 |
2,915 |
Bromley |
14,240 |
1,424 |
Camden |
10,860 |
1,086 |
City of London |
1,460 |
146 |
Croydon |
29,490 |
2,949 |
Ealing |
28,070 |
2,807 |
Enfield |
18,760 |
1,876 |
Greenwich |
32,040 |
3,204 |
Hackney |
13,300 |
1,330 |
Hammersmith and Fulham |
16,480 |
1,648 |
Haringey |
19,580 |
1,958 |
Harrow |
13,920 |
1,392 |
Havering |
18,750 |
1,875 |
Hillingdon |
15,530 |
1,553 |
Hounslow |
21,820 |
2,182 |
Islington |
7,750 |
775 |
Kensington and Chelsea |
4,880 |
488 |
Kingston upon Thames |
13,640 |
1,364 |
Lambeth |
15,890 |
1,589 |
Lewisham |
21,170 |
2,117 |
LLDC |
21,610 |
2,161 |
Merton |
13,280 |
1,328 |
Newham |
38,500 |
3,850 |
OPDC |
13,670 |
1,367 |
Redbridge |
19,790 |
1,979 |
Richmond upon Thames |
8,110 |
811 |
Southwark |
25,540 |
2,554 |
Sutton |
9,390 |
939 |
Tower Hamlets |
35,110 |
3,511 |
Waltham Forest |
17,940 |
1,794 |
Wandsworth |
23,100 |
2,310 |
Westminster |
10,100 |
1,010 |
Total |
649,350 |
64,935 |