Polling by YouGov found people are three times more likely to want the Government to build more social housing than encouraging developers to build more private homes
Voters are three times more likely to want the Government to build more social housing than encouraging developers to build private homes, new polling shows.
Figures show 58% want ministers to set a target for the amount of social housing included in plans to build 1.5million homes by 2029. According to polling by YouGov data, 48% of the public say that the government should focus on building more social homes. Just 14% said the government should encourage developers to build more private homes.
It comes as the government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill returns to Parliament for its third reading this week. Green MP Ellie Chowns told The Mirror that without an explicit social housing commitment, the Bill is a “charter for developers’ greed”.
She said: “A place to call home is the foundation of a good life. But right now a secure home is out of reach for too many people – rents are spiralling, families are struggling to afford a place to live, and over a million people are stuck on housing waiting lists.
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“But instead of tackling the crisis head-on by building the social housing we need, this government is writing a charter for developers’ greed, giving them carte blanche to bulldoze over communities and nature in order to build luxury homes only the richest can afford.
“As a result, big developers will be able to line their pockets even further while ordinary people are locked out of affording a decent home.” The landmark bill, put forward in March, will set out how the delivery process for critical infrastructure will be streamlined.
Deputy PM Angela Rayner said at the time: “We need to reform the system to ensure it is sensible and balanced, and does not create unintended delays – putting a hold on people’s lives and harming our efforts to build the homes people desperately need.”
A spokesman from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said: “The government inherited an unprecedented housing crisis, but we will get Britain building again and deliver the biggest boost to social and affordable housing in a generation.
“Through our Plan for Change, we are providing an £800 million top up to the Affordable Homes Programme and a £2 billion down payment on further funding, while our landmark Planning and Infrastructure Bill will drive housebuilding to meet our stretching target of 1.5 million homes.”
:: YouGov polled 2,241 adults between 2 and 3 ::
‘This isn’t how we should be fixing the housing crisis’
By Ellie Chowns, Green MP for North Herefordshire
A place to call home is the foundation of a good life. But across the country, for too many people, just keeping a roof over their heads is a struggle.
This Labour government came into power promising to fix this and finally tackle the housing crisis. But instead, they’re writing legislation that would give big developers a blank cheque to build pretty much whatever they want, wherever they want – no matter the cost to nature, and with no guarantee that new homes will be affordable.
We know what the result will be: more luxury housing in out-of-town developments that only the richest can afford, while everyone else is still priced out of home ownership, falling behind on rent, or stuck on housing waiting lists.
This isn’t what the public want. On the contrary: Brits are three times more likely to want the government to focus on building social housing, than on encouraging developers to build private homes.
And it’s not what this country deserves. Everyone has the right to a warm, safe, affordable home – and it’s the government’s duty to deliver it.
That’s why I’m demanding that the government use the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to restore Britain’s social housing – by setting targets for building homes for social rent, and ensuring these homes are zero carbon and fit for the future.
It’s time to ask Ministers: will you build the homes we need, or sell us out to developers’ greed?
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