Mr Stephens highlighted the challenges faced by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), particularly in relation to cash flow issues due to late payments from larger companies. He noted that Scotland's affordable housing programme has committed £3.5 billion over five years, with £752 million invested in 2023-24.

The Chair advised colleagues to be mindful of the timing and requested that Front-Bench speeches start at 14:28.

Matthew Pennycook highlighted the long-term decline of small and medium-sized house builders, noting its negative impact on housing supply, location, quality, and design. He suggested directing Homes England to give greater weight to quality over cost in development appraisal and amending national planning policy to ensure local authorities allocate smaller sites for development. Matthew also pointed out that recent market downturns exacerbate the challenges faced by SME house builders due to high inflation and interest rates.

Natural England's nutrient neutrality policy is responsible for the delay of at least 120,000 new homes with planning permission and an estimated 41,000 more homes not coming forward annually. The policy undermines growth and environmental objectives.

Peter Aldous highlighted the importance of a vibrant SME house building sector, which builds well-designed homes on challenging sites and positively impacts local economies. He cited a report showing planning delays and rising costs are major barriers to growth for SME builders, with 68% impacted by nutrient issues. Aldous suggested increasing resources for Homes England and promoting bank responsiveness towards SME builders.

A constituent who is a small house builder has spent £750,000 of his own money on building a road under a section 106 obligation but cannot finish his work due to nutrient neutrality issues.

The MP highlighted the frequent turnover of housing Ministers under the current Government, questioning how effective this instability is for addressing the housing crisis. She argued that large monopolistic firms dominate the market, with the eight largest builders accounting for over 50% of new homes and small builders only 10%. McDonagh also pointed out that 20% of housing associations account for 95% of registered stock in London. She suggested building on unbuilt green belt land within a 10-minute walk from train stations, which could accommodate up to one million new homes. The MP criticised the Help to Buy scheme, stating it primarily benefited high-income earners and inflated house prices.

Mr. Farron emphasised the importance of SME house builders, highlighting that over 1,500 genuinely affordable social rented properties have been built in his constituency. He expressed concerns about planning rules allowing developers to build more executive houses than needed and criticised the current housing market with a significant imbalance between short-term and long-term rentals. Mr. Farron also noted the impact of second homes on communities and hospitals, urging for changes in planning law to limit them.