Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Social Housing

Monday 19 April 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial Questions on Social Housing held on 2021-04-19
  • Local authorities are responsible for identifying housing needs including affordable housing
  • Over the last decade, approximately 150,000 new homes for social rent have been constructed

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Justin Madders Lab Ellesmere Port and Bromborough
Housing
Context

The question stems from a need to address the gap between social housing demand and supply, with constituents unable to afford private homes and facing barriers in accessing that market.

Question

What recent estimate has been made of the number of additional council and housing association homes required to meet demand for social housing?

Answer from Christopher Pincher

Planning policy is clear: it is for local authorities to identify the size, type and tenure of the housing needed for different groups in the community, including those who require affordable housing. We are committed to increasing the supply of affordable housing and are investing over £12 billion in the affordable housing programme over the next five years, the largest investment in affordable housing in over a decade.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific estimate requested was not provided.

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Q2 Justin Madders Lab Ellesmere Port and Bromborough
Housing
Context

The question addresses the issue of constituents unable to afford private homes due to various devices used by landlords, leading them to seek social housing options which are insufficient in supply.

Question

Many of my constituents cannot afford to buy a house of their own and are finding that private sector landlords are using various devices to block access to that market as well, such as through guarantees and bond requirements, so council housing or social housing is the only option, but demand is outstripping supply, and according to the Chartered Institute of Housing, outside London only a third of all the social housing needed will actually be built in the next five years. So what does the Minister say to my constituents who find themselves with no housing options at all at the moment?

Answer from Christopher Pincher

Over the last 10 years around 150,000 new homes for social rent have been built. We have made it easier for local authorities to build their own council homes by changing the rules around the housing revenue account and by making it easier for them to get cheap loans through the Public Works Loan Board. Our new affordable homes programme, investing £12 billion-plus in new homes over the next five years, will double the number of socially rentable homes built to 32,000.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific concerns about constituents' lack of housing options were not directly addressed.

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