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Love Labour – Lost Tories
The Labour Party is winning plaudits for its policies on housebuilding while the Conservatives also have housing high on the political agenda – but...
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Loving Labour Instead
Some conservative organisations that represent the construction and housing sector are showing more and more of a lean towards Labour policies that will get Britain building.
Labour has announced that it in government, it would bring forward ‘greybelt’ classifications on some green belt sites that are not actually ’green’, alongside other appropriate plots. In so doing ‘golden rules’ would be instilled alongside them to secure planning certainty and good placemaking.
Richard Beresford, chief executive of the National Federation of Builders (NFB), says: “Prioritising grey belt and pairing it with golden rules would ensure greenspace loss is mitigated, vital supporting infrastructure is delivered and both builders and local people getting planning and placemaking certainty. It’s a win for all parties which is why we support it.”
Labour’s five golden rules are:
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Brownfield first.
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Grey belt second.
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Affordable homes.
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Boost public services and infrastructure.
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Protect genuine green space.
The focus will be on ensuring grey belt sites deliver as many community benefits as possible, such as schools and GP surgeries. Affordable housing targets will be strengthened and developments should serve to increase access to nature, so that housebuilding and nature are compatible.
House Builders Association
Rico Wojtulewicz, head of policy and market insight at the NFB and House Builders Association, says: “The devil will always be in the detail, however Labour appears to understand that placemaking requires input and support from all quarters and that the housebuilder’s job is to build the homes, not control what infrastructure is required, how offsite nature links up to a new development and why a site is allocated for new homes.
”A grey belt also suggests some greenbelt reassessment, something even Conservative backbenchers have been calling for, yet the government keeps dismissing.
“Alongside other announcements and discussions, such as reforming compulsory purchase and having more onsite biodiversity opportunities, it feels as though we have a political party which understands the problems planning uncertainty causes for housebuilders, communities, nature, and society at large.”
Federation of Master Builders
Brian Berry, chief executive of the Federation of Master Builders says: “The UK is experiencing a growing housing crisis and brownfield sites alone are insufficient to tackle the scale of the challenge that we face. While brownfield land should be prioritised, introducing new measures to create more buildable land is vital, particularly small sites which can be used by local house builders, as this will help to create more diverse, quality housing.
“The Labour Party’s proposal to introduce five ‘golden rules’ for ‘grey belt’ development is an important initiative to help deliver more homes.
“More detail is needed about the proposal, particularly as to how ‘poor-quality and ugly areas’ are to be classified as grey belt. However, we know that many small sites in green belt areas, such as disused car parks and petrol stations, would be perfectly suitable for housing. Unlocking small sites would present significant opportunities, and these proposals must be supported with increased funding to empower local authority planning departments to support micro and SME housebuilders through the planning system.”
Picture: Kier Starmer’s stance on house building is winning friends and influencing organisations not normally known to lean to the left.
www.builders.org.uk/membership/house-builders-association
Article written by Cathryn Ellis
26th April 2024