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Without Buyers Labour Can’t Get Britain Building
Unless Labour has a solution that enables buyers to afford to buy houses, therefore incentivising builders to build, they will still be stuck with a...
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New Towns Taskforce To Tackle Tory Failures
The New Towns Taskforce has held its first meeting and confirmed the final list of members as it pushes ahead to identify potential sites for new towns and undo years of Tory dithering.
Eight seasoned experts have been added to the Taskforce to deliver new towns that could provide hundreds of thousands of new homes.
The group’s first meeting was held on 17 September 2024 in the post-war new town of Milton Keynes which itself has been mooted as an area for expansion or for a ‘sister’ new town to be built in the same county.
The Taskforce is to report back on potential locations to ministers next year. There ae ambitious plans coming from government for the largest post-war housebuilding programme to get going to get Britain building..
The eight industry experts now sit alongside chairperson Sir Michael Lyons and deputy chair, Dame Kate Barker. They include key players across planning, infrastructure delivery, architecture and urban regeneration.
The group confirmed the responsibilities for each member, laying the groundwork to identify appropriate locations and learning the lessons from previous efforts to build new towns. They were also joined by the deputy Prime Minister and housing minister who spoke remotely with members during the day.
Big step
Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner said: “Today marks a momentous step in our journey to deliver the next generation of new towns and transform the lives of millions of working people in every part of the country.
”We want to see new communities with real character providing genuinely affordable, safe and secure homes, much-needed infrastructure and well-paying jobs.
”I have every confidence in Sir Michael’s leadership and his Taskforce is working at pace to make sure our long-term ambition becomes a reality.”
The Taskforce’s areas of work will include:
- Identifying and reviewing high-potential locations for new towns.
- Agreeing principles and standards that must be met to provide good quality places.
- Exploring new ways to attract future funding and investment.
- Finding practical solutions to remove barriers that will unlock the delivery of new towns.
This work will form the publication of the final report due to land on ministers’ desks next year, with plans to engage with mayors, local leaders and communities in the coming months.
Housing and Planning Minister, Matthew Pennycook said: “I am really pleased that the New Towns Taskforce has held its first meeting today. It brings together a wealth of experience from across the industry. I look forward to engaging with it over the months ahead as it works to identify the most suitable locations across the country for large-scale new communities.
”Today’s meeting also confirmed working arrangements for the Taskforce who will report back to the Deputy Prime Minister on a monthly basis, and they will be supported by officials across the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Homes England every step of the way.
”This involves the creation of a New Towns Code that developers will have to follow to ensure new towns are great places to live and will include the golden rule of 40% affordable housing.”
Ramp up housing supply
Sir Michael Lyons said: “We have an important agenda to work through over the next 12 months to ensure that the next generation of new towns deliver the government’s plans for economic growth and housing ambitions.
”The government is already taking immediate action to ramp up housing supply and boost economic growth by reintroducing mandatory housing targets for councils through an updated National Planning Policy Framework to help deliver 1.5 million homes over the next five years.”
Unblocking
Large housing sites facing blockages in the development system will also be fast-tracked through the New Homes Accelerator programme, which will see planning experts deployed on the ground to support local councils.
This is alongside the landmark £150 million partnership recently signed by Homes England to act as a master developer that will unlock largescale brownfield developments across the country, ranging from 1,000 to more than 10,000 homes.
New Towns Taskforce members
Sir Michael Lyons is the non-executive chairman of the English Cities Fund, a joint venture set up by three partners, including Homes England, which has large scale regeneration developments in London, Liverpool, Plymouth, Salford and Wakefield. He has spent 26 years in local government, including 17 years as chief executive of three major UK local authorities including Birmingham City Council. He has been a member of the boards of Redrow homes and Sage Housing. He is also a former chair of the BBC. He previously chaired the Housing Commission in 2014 established by Ed Miliband, which set out how the UK could boost housing supply.
Dame Kate Barker
Dame Kate Barker chairs the trustee for the Universities Superannuation Scheme and is also a church commissioner for the Church of England. She chairs the Governing Council of the Productivity Institute.
She is a former non-executive director at Taylor Wimpey plc, at Man Group plc and at the Yorkshire Building Society. She was an external member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee between 2001 and 2010. During that time, she was commissioned by the government to conduct a major independent policy review of UK Housing Supply in 2004 followed by a review of Land Use Planning in 2006. She has also authored a book titled ‘Housing: where’s the plan’ and was previously a commissioner for the National Infrastructure Commission.
Bill Hughes
Hughes is Global Head of Real Assets and Co-Head of Private Markets at Legal & General. He plays an active role in the wider infrastructure and housing industry, having been Chair of the Property Industry Alliance since 2016.
Dame Diane Coyle
Coyle is an economist and Bennett Professor of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. She is also a director of the Productivity Institute, a Fellow of the Office for National Statistics and an academic adviser to the CMA.
Eamonn Boylan
Boylan has over 40 years of expertise in local government, including chief executive of Stockport, Greater Manchester CA and Transport for Greater Manchester. He is currently interim CEO of Manchester City Council and chair of Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation.
Helen Gordon
Gordon is the CEO of Grainger, the UK’s largest publicly listed residential landlord and Build to Rent developer.vShe worked on the development of Milton Keynes early in her career.
Kate Henderson
Henderson is the chief executive of the National Housing Federation, the voice of England’s housing associations.
Nick Raynsford
Raynsford is the current president of the Town and Country Planning Association and author of the 2018 Raynsford Review of Planning. He was an MP from 1986 to 2015 and held multiple ministerial positions including Minister of State for Housing and Planning.
Sowmya Parthasarathy
Parthasarathy is an architect and urban designer at Arup, with over 30 years of global experience. She has been involved in award-winning masterplans, strategic plans, and urban design guides, such as London’s 2012 Olympic Legacy Masterplan.
Dr Wei Yang
Dr Wei is a town planner and urban designer. She is CEO of the Digital Task Force for Planning and Chairman of Wei Yang & Partners. Wei currently serves as the Chair of the Construction Industry Council and a member of the UN Habitat World Urban Campaign Steering Committee.
Picture: Milton Keynes hosted the first meeting of the New Towns Taskforce.
Article written by Cathryn Ellis
20th September 2024