Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 10
10
We have previously challenged the Department on its detailed plans and projections for how it...
Recommendation
We have previously challenged the Department on its detailed plans and projections for how it would achieve its target of building 300,000 new homes per year by the mid- 2020s, most recently in our report Planning and the broken housing market. We were concerned that meeting the target of 300,000 new homes a year would need a significant step-up in the level of house building and that current levels of new homes were not promising. In June 2019, we recommended that, by October 2019, the Department should set out publicly the full set of actions it was taking to achieve its target and include year-on- year projections of the number of new homes it expected to be built.28 In its response, the Government disagreed with our recommendation and said that, while it was committed to being transparent about tis objectives and progress towards them, it did not intend to publish either its forecasting model or year-on-year projections of net housing delivery.29
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
3.1 The government disagrees with this recommendation. 3.2 The department has and continues to be transparent about its objectives, and the progress towards them. In June 2019, the department published its latest Single Department Plan, including strategic objectives to increase supply. The Departmental Plan will be updated in line with the wider timetable, to be agreed with Cabinet Office and HM Treasury. The department publishes quarterly data on the progress towards raising net housing supply to 300,000 a year, meeting Conservative Party manifesto commitments. 3.3 This government is determined to level up opportunities across the country, building the homes this country needs. 3.4 The department has made significant progress having delivered over 1.8 million new homes since 2010, including 508,000 affordable homes and around 244,000 additional homes last year - the highest level in over 30 years. 3.5 COVID-19 and associated economic conditions have significantly impacted supply. To support house building, the government announced initial funding of £7.1 billion for a new National Home Building Fund, unlocking up to 860,000 homes. This includes £2.2 billion of new loan finance to support housebuilders across the country. 3.6 This forms part of the nearly £20 billion in multi-year capital investment announced in the 2020 Spending Review, including the new £11.5bn Affordable Homes Programme will provide up to 180,000 new homes. 3.7 The Planning for the Future White Paper in August 2020 proposed reforms to streamline and modernise the planning process, with enough land and the long-term conditions for increased supply.