Morning Briefing: Jenrick promises to ‘strain every sinew’ to get homes built

News29.07.199.10 AM by Peter Apps

The new housing secretary visits Wolverhampton, and the rest of the weekend’s housing news

New housing secretary Robert Jenrick (picture: Chris McAndrew)

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The new housing secretary visits Wolverhampton, and the rest of the weekend’s housing news #ukhousing

Morning Briefing: Jenrick promises to “strain every sinew” to get homes built #ukhousing

New housing secretary Robert Jenrick has spoken to the Express & Star, the regional paper that covers Wolverhampton, where he was born.

The secretary of state visited the town over the weekend and gave an interview about his desire to solve the housing crisis – which included the obligatory reference to protecting the green belt.

He said: “We need the houses and the infrastructure to follow that and I think it’s extremely important that we do get those homes built. And the new prime minister, Boris Johnson, was clear on the campaign trail that we need to respect the green belt.

“As secretary of state, I’m going to strain every sinew and try to pull every lever that’s available to me to help communities build the homes they need.”

The new prime minister has also announced plans for a £3.6bn boost to “deprived towns”. Although the cash will focus on “transport, broadband and cultural infrastructure”, according to The Guardian, these changes would surely have an impact on the viability of new housing schemes if successfully delivered.

In Glasgow, concerns have been raised about the plight of asylum seekers after it emerged that the controversial evictions of those living in temporary accommodation have begun, The Guardian reports. You can read an insight piece about the issue in Inside Housing here.

The Daily Telegraph reports on the case of a man ordered to pay back £100,000 after renting out his council home on short-term lettings website Airbnb. Westminster Council took him to court regarding the property in Victoria, central London.

Thinktank the Centre for Social Justice has produced a report about the actions employers are taking to help their employees with the strains of the housing crisis.

The report is covered in City AM and reveals that almost of half of businesses believe the crisis is having an impact on productivity.

Another thinktank, the Social Metrics Commission, has produced figures showing that four million people in the UK are trapped in “deep poverty”, defined as being at least 50% below the official breadline.

In local news, Wiltshire is planning the development of 750 new council homes across the county, the Salisbury Journal reports.

On social media

Paul Hackett, chief executive of Optivo, comments on the CSJ research:

According to new research by @csjthinktank, #UKBusinesses say a shortage of housing is harming productivity. Research by Duncan McLennan in Jan showed investing in #AffordableHousing is good for productivity and GDP and not just a merit good. #ukhousing t.co/U6jDQEO5mk
— Paul Hackett (@PaulHackett10)
According to new research by @csjthinktank, #UKBusinesses say a shortage of housing is harming productivity. Research by Duncan McLennan in Jan showed investing in #AffordableHousing is good for productivity and GDP and not just a merit good. #ukhousing https://t.co/U6jDQEO5mk
— Paul Hackett (@PaulHackett10) July 29, 2019

And Mark Perry, chief executive of Vivid, is concerned by the new emphasis on homeownership:

What happened to fighting stigma? @24housing @natfednews @placeshapers @pollyn1 More work for us all to do convincing government of affordable/social housing as alternative solution to housing crisis. t.co/ceW4edsUts
— mark perry (@Pez_mark)
What happened to fighting stigma? @24housing @natfednews @placeshapers @pollyn1 More work for us all to do convincing government of affordable/social housing as alternative solution to housing crisis. https://t.co/ceW4edsUts
— mark perry (@Pez_mark) July 28, 2019