Government set to miss its targets for the number, area and type of new homes: Public Accounts Committee
The Government is likely to build 32,000 fewer homes than targeted in its 2016-2021 housebuilding programme, a report from a House of Commons select committee has revealed.
Alongside the 30,000-home shortfall in planned house building, the Public Accounts Committee also concluded that the Government will not meet a "clear demand" for more social homes for rent.
The underperformance led the committee to call on the Government to publish transparent data on where homes are built by local authority, noting that its research suggested the Department only expects to deliver 5-7.5% of homes in rural communities, against a target of 10%.
The committee report shows that of the Government's target of 430,000 new homes in its 2016-2021 programme, only 398,000 are expected to be built.
As part of the programme, the Government set sub-targets for building specific types of housing, which it is also struggling to meet.
According to the Public Account Committee, the Government is set to miss its target to deliver homes in rural areas and may struggle to deliver 10% of homes as supported homes, which involve supervision or care for vulnerable tenants.
Homes for social rent, important for reducing the number of people in costly temporary accommodation, have also been neglected by the Government as a result of a ministerial decision that half of the homes to be built under the 2021 programme are for ownership rather than rental, the report noted.
Commenting on the Government's work with local authorities on house building, the report said Westminster "does not focus support to local authorities with the highest housing needs".
It specifies an overall target for new homes that local authorities should see built in their area "but does not use the Programme to help individual councils meet these targets", the report added.
In addition, potential savings have been missed as the Government has not quantified savings resulting in providing homes that could reduce local authority spending on adult social care.
The report also suggested that local authorities lack strong powers to shape development in their local areas as they face penalties if they do not approve enough development proposals put forward by housing providers to meet their overall targets.
The report comes as the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove, has announced reforms to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill that will give more leeway to councils which are failing to meet their five-year housing land supply targets.
Responding to the report, Cllr Darren Rodwell, London Councils' Executive Member for Regeneration, Housing & Planning, said given the increasing scale of housebuilding challenges, London councils "want to work with the Government in ramping up the support available to social housing providers and preventing a slump in the delivery of new affordable homes".
Cllr Rodwell added: "London boroughs will continue to make the case for more investment in housebuilding, which will pay enormous dividends and help us achieve our shared goals of ending homelessness and securing economic growth."
Adam Carey
