ao link
Twitter
Facebook
Linked In
Twitter
Facebook
Linked In

You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles

Morning Briefing: chief secretary to Treasury places housing among priorities for Spending Review

The chief secretary to the Treasury has said this year’s Spending Review will focus on housing alongside other public services

Linked InTwitterFacebookeCard
Elizabeth Truss, chief secretary to the Treasury
Elizabeth Truss, chief secretary to the Treasury
Sharelines

Morning Briefing: Spending Review this year will focus on housing and public services, said the chief secretary to the Treasury #ukhousing

In the news

FT Adviser reports on a speech given by Liz Truss, chief secretary to the Treasury, in which she discussed what this year’s Spending Review will focus on.

She said planning laws would soon be reformed by James Brokenshire and emphasised the cost to the taxpayer of failures in housing policy - with the Treasury set to spend £34bn on housing benefit next year.

While there was some mention of housing, there were also prominent mentions for other public services, particularly health and transport and a focus on cutting waste in public spending, in what she badged a ’people’s Spending Review’. The full text of the speech is available here.

At the same time, house price growth has continued to slow, according to The Guardian, which reports that the UK is heading this year for the first fall in property values since the financial crash.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that house prices increased by 1.7% in the year to January 2019, down from 2.2% in December 2018.

The same newspaper reports on plans to offer rough sleepers stab-proof coats that turn into sleeping bags amidst evidence of growing violence against them.

The coats, which are being developed by social enterprise Red Dragon, are being trialled and could be rolled out initially in South Wales.

Also in The Guardian is news that Aberdeenshire planners have approved Donald Trump’s plan to build 550 homes near his golf course, despite not including any affordable housing.

The council has decided, in the face of a record number of objections, to approve the plans if The Trump Organisation makes a contribution to affordable housing elsewhere in Aberdeenshire.

Meanwhile, The Independent has a story on figures released by the Department for Work and Pensions in response to a written question from MP Frank Field.

These show that 53% of Universal Credit claimants had money “deducted” from their benefits payments in October 2018.

In local news, the BBC reports that a blind and disabled woman in Bootle who has waited for nearly two years for bathroom modifications was told to wash at a local gym.

Judith Mason, 57, who has rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes and is a resident of the local housing association, Plus Dane, was told to go to the local gym by the council, according to the BBC.

On social media

Our reporter Nathaniel Barker is at the National Housing Federation’s finance conference in Liverpool. Follow him on Twitter for more updates today:

What’s on

  • Today will see the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee make a statement to the House of Commons on leasehold reform

Update: at 12.50 on 21.3.19 This story was updated to clarify that Ms Mason was told to shower at the gym by the council, not Plus Dane.


READ MORE

Why delaying action will only make the housing crisis worseWhy delaying action will only make the housing crisis worse

Linked InTwitterFacebookeCard
Add New Comment
You must be logged in to comment.