Angela Rayner Warns New Towns Plan May Fail Housing Goals

Last month, the Deputy Prime Minister announced an ambitious initiative aimed at launching the "largest housebuilding programme since the postwar period," focusing on the development of new towns. However, a recent analysis by the urban policy thinktank Centre for Cities reveals that this programme may only account for a mere 3.3% of all new housebuilding since the 1946 New Towns Act. Between 1947 and 1991, new town development corporations in England facilitated the construction of 307,000 homes, a figure the government aims to match annually until 2029. The government’s proposal includes the establishment of large communities, each comprising at least 10,000 homes, with a target of 40% designated as affordable housing. Ministers are optimistic that this revitalized new towns initiative could lead to the construction of "hundreds of thousands" of homes over the coming decades. However, Centre for Cities cautions that achieving the government's target of 1.5 million homes will require significantly more new towns and urban extensions than historically accomplished. The analysis highlights that historically, public authorities were responsible for constructing about three-quarters of homes in new towns, with private builders contributing only 76,000 homes in the four decades following 1946. In contrast, last year saw approximately 189,260 homes built across the UK, predominantly by the private sector. Experts suggest that to meet the government's housing pledge, land equivalent to double the size of Milton Keynes would need to be utilized. Centre for Cities emphasizes that new towns should be just one of several strategies employed to meet housing targets, advocating for the imposition of housing mandates on local councils as a crucial step forward. The government maintains that the overhaul of the planning system will facilitate the delivery of 1.5 million homes during this parliamentary term.