“”I fear it’s the case that there are tens of thousands of properties that are not in the state that they should be.”
“The poor are doing worse in terms of unaffordability of energy than they are in other European countries.”
“One proposal under consideration is reducing the amount of land local authorities are required to supply to meet their building targets.”
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There are a lot of badly-built, damp and mouldy homes in Plymouth which are being replaced by something better – as reported today:
Plymouth’s new housing block opens as ‘damp and poorly constructed’ homes demolished – Plymouth Live
There is clearly not-enough good housing, as recent headlines have shown.
There is the government’s attempt to address the issue of bad housing:
“I fear it’s the case that there are tens of thousands of properties that are not in the state that they should be.” Housing: Tens of thousands of homes unsafe, Michael Gove says – BBC News
Members of the Social Housing Quality Residents Panel will share their experiences with ministers, inform policy change and ensure resident voices are properly heard as the government drives forward its social housing reforms. The launch follows the Housing Secretary’s action, announced this week, against Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH) after it failed to treat hazardous mould leading to the tragic death of Awaab Ishak. Social housing tenants put at the heart of government reforms – GOV.UK
There is the knock-on effect of poor housing on fuel poverty, as reported by the Independent:
On the subject of the public health threat of mould and damp, last week I spoke to leading expert Professor Sir Michael Marmot about his work in this area as part of my investigation into poor housing conditions. “If you look at the gap between rich and poor, in how much of their income they pay for energy, to heat their home, that gap between the richest 10 per cent and the poorest 10 per cent is bigger in the UK than in other European countries,” he continued. “For example, in France, the richest 10 per cent spend about 6 per cent of their income on heating. And in the UK, the richest 10 per cent pay about 6 per cent of their income. But in France, the poorest 10 per cent spend about 12 per cent of their income on energy but in the UK is 18 per cent. So, we’ve got a bigger gap, the poor are doing worse in terms of unaffordability of energy than they are in other European countries.” Marmot also voiced these concerns in September when he published his Fuel Poverty, Cold Homes and Health Inequalities report. The black mould crisis has been years in the making
There are struggles over housing quotas in Parliament underway:
The housing secretary Michael Gove is willing to change the government’s levelling up bill to allow “greater flexibility” on housebuilding ‘targets’ and to prioritise brownfield land development, Whitehall officials have confirmed. Gove ‘tells Tory rebels he is open to compromise on housing targets’ | Planning Resource [paywall]
Scrapping house building targets will prompt construction of new homes to slump by 20pc and put 800,000 jobs at risk, the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) has warned. The Government currently has a target to build 300,000 a year but senior Tories have argued that centralised housing targets are no longer necessary for more homes to be built per year. Former Prime Minister Liz Truss and her successor Rishi Sunak both argued against targets during the summer Conservative Party leadership campaign. One proposal under consideration is reducing the amount of land local authorities are required to supply to meet their building targets. This would stymie efforts to build houses, the CPS said, and lead to a sharp drop in projects. Axing house building targets would put 800,000 jobs at risk, warns CPS [paywall]
Backbench rebels, mainly from southern suburbs and towns, are threatening to amend the levelling-up and regeneration bill. They want to make Whitehall housing targets advisory, not mandatory, for local councils, and to allow councils to ban building on the green belt. They appear to have the power to halt the government’s plans in their tracks. The levelling up secretary, Michael Gove, is trying to find ways of buying off the revolt. One option he is examining is to restrict the option of turning new-builds into holiday rentals. Others include incentivising building on brownfield sites rather than greenfield ones, penalties on developers who wait for land prices to rise, and stronger rights to appeal against unpopular developments. None of these approaches offer the real housing solutions to individual and community social needs that the situation requires. Instead, communities are often left with a choice between developers’ interests and nimbyism. What Britain plainly needs is a mix that includes social and affordable housing of good quality and size, with proper community assets like schools, doctors and shops, and where residents are not so dependent on the motor car. But in the Britain of 2022 that more virtuous mix is simply not on offer. The Guardian view on housing politics: a clash of false alternatives | Editorial | The Guardian
And meanwhile, there is the continued breakdown in the private rental market: ‘Freeze rent not renters’: Tenants march across UK amid cost of living crisis – The Big Issue
Chris Norris, the policy director for the National Residential Landlords Association, said dwindling supply was to blame for rising rents. He criticised Gove for previously saying he wanted to “shrink the private sector”, and said the NLA was urging him to reverse course, unfreeze housing benefit and accelerate housebuilding. “According to Zoopla, the demand for private rented housing is up 142% so far this year compared to the five-year average,” Norris said. “In stark contrast, the supply of such housing has fallen by 46%. The end result is that more and more tenants are finding it difficult to access a dwindling supply of homes, resulting in higher rents.” Soaring rents making life ‘unaffordable’ for private UK tenants, research shows | Housing | The Guardian
Yes, things are very bad in Exeter: Information Commissioner to investigate university over student accommodation numbers refusal – Exeter Observer
And in Devon generally: ‘Rent trap’ in South Hams as rocketing costs force young people out – Devon Live