No excuses not to build 1.5m new homes, Rayner says

UK Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has stated that there are "no excuses" for failing to meet Labour's manifesto pledge to build 1.5 million new homes. The government had previously declared its intention to achieve this housing construction target in England by 2029, before the next general election, further emphasizing the importance of addressing the housing crisis.

Analysis by the BBC shows that the number of new homes in England has continued to fall in the first six months of Labour's administration. Rayner, in an interview with the BBC's "Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg" program, said that Labour was aware that achieving this goal "would be very difficult" given the trends in housing construction prior to taking office, but she expressed her determination to achieve it. This acknowledgement highlights the challenges ahead for Labour in fulfilling their housing promise.

Rayner stated that within a month of taking office as Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, she was asked whether she would reassess Labour's housing target. "I'm not going to give up on the target," she said. She indicated that she is personally "determined to deliver 1.5 million homes," and stated that policies such as reforming the planning system "take time" to have an impact, underscoring the need for long-term strategies.

She added: "There are no excuses for failing to build the homes that people desperately need. We are serious about this because too many people can't access those homes." Former Conservative MP and Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said on the program that the pace of house building was "too slow." She stated that the Conservative Party also pledged to build more than 1.5 million new homes in its 2024 manifesto, adding that the party had made "a lot of progress" during its time in office, "but the reality is, the speed is still too slow." "The highest number we got to was about 249,000 a year," she said. "It's now clear we had to deal with Brexit, Covid and a war in Europe at that time. But it shows the scale of the challenge."

Labour hopes that building more homes will lower house prices and make buying and renting homes more affordable, especially for young people. Their target means building an average of 300,000 new homes per year – a figure not reached since the 1970s. In recent years, the number of new homes built each year has been far below that figure. The housing industry has expressed skepticism about Labour's housing target and whether it can be achieved by 2029. The construction industry warns that it is facing a long-term shortage of skilled workers. There are also concerns about the supply of basic building materials such as bricks and timber. Many housing experts are uncertain whether private homebuilders have the capacity or willingness to deliver enough new homes each year.

Meanwhile, Rayner's department has developed plans to speed up the home buying process and give renters more power. The government says it plans to reduce transaction times by introducing digital identity services and data sharing. Currently, documents relating to house sales take months to be exchanged and checked by mortgage companies and other relevant parties. Under a fully digitalized home buying and selling process, the government says, "the information needed by key players from mortgage lenders to surveyors will be instantly at their fingertips and necessary identity checks will be done once and for all." The housing department says it is working with the property market and the Land Registry to agree on rules for data sharing and digital identity verification services.

There are also plans to empower renters to take easier control of their buildings through right to manage. Right to manage allows owners of some leasehold homes to take over the management of the building – even without the landlord's consent – and gives them control over how their service charges are spent. The government says it will be making amendments to the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 on Monday. Housing and Planning Minister Matthew Pennycook said the reforms build on the government's plans to deliver "1.5 million safe and decent homes in this Parliament, and our ongoing efforts to protect leaseholders from unfair and unreasonable practices."