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MPs urge Reed to explain how London ‘emergency measures’ will boost social housing
Housing secretary Steve Reed is facing pressure from an influential parliamentary committee to explain how emergency measures aimed at boosting London housebuilding will increase social and affordable delivery.
Housing secretary Steve Reed is facing pressure from an influential parliamentary committee to explain how emergency measures aimed at boosting London housebuilding will increase social and affordable delivery #ukhousingFlorence Eshalomi, chair of the Housing, Communities and Local Government (HCLG) committee and MP for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green, has written to Mr Reed with a series of questions over the plans announced last month.
The proposals, which remain subject to a six-week consultation, include allowing developers to opt for a new “fast-track” planning route where they commit to a target of just 20% affordable homes. The current threshold is 35%.
However, the committee has said it wants to know what “modelling" the government or Greater London Authority has done to show that 20% is the “optimal target to increase the number of social and affordable homes delivered in London overall”.
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The government has insisted its plans will “ensure more affordable homes are being built” in London. However, others have also raised concerns about the proposals, including the leader of the opposition at Southwark Council.
Ms Eshalomi’s letter, which has come ahead of Mr Reed’s debut appearance in front of her committee next week, also questioned what extra grant funding will be available to support the package, the impact on housing for key workers and how the proposals will tackle homelessness.
The joint Homes for London package from the government and City Hall also includes a so-called “gain-share” mechanism, which means developers using the fast-track 20% route may still have to deliver more affordable homes if “market conditions improve”.
Ms Eshalomi said her committee is “concerned” by some exemptions to the mechanism, which includes allowing a get-out if a scheme is delayed by Building Safety Regulator approval.
The committee also warned that some developers might only build the first floor of sites, rather than completing the full building, to avoid a viability review.
The cross-party group also asked Mr Reed to explain “what consideration the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has given to requiring a certain number of affordable homes to be completed to qualify for exemption from further viability reviews”.
The committee additionally questioned whether the MHCLG had considered the impact on building safety as part of its plan to encourage building at greater density, and why cycle storage requirements are seen as a barrier to development viability, since the proposals include reducing the need for cycle parking at developments.
Ms Eshalomi said: “The Secretary of State should set out how these Homes for London proposals will ultimately deliver more affordable homes.”
She has asked Mr Reed to respond by 19 November. The housing secretary is due to appear before the committee next Tuesday (11 November).
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has been contacted for comment.
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