Select committee: Built Environment Committee
Recommendation 112
1st Report - Meeting housing demand
Published 10 Jan 2022
Built Environment Committee Meeting the UK’s housing demand All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
A ccess to finance is one of the key barriers for SME housebuilders. The Government should work with lenders to encourage them to provide more support to SME housebuilders on commercial terms. 161 Savills and LDS, A review of the availability of development sites for SME housebuilders in England and Wales (2021): https://ldsyoursite.com/savills-sme-housebuilders-report-demonstrates-huge- potential [accessed 16 December 2021] 162 Ibid. 163 Ibid. 164 Q 87 (Rt Hon. Christopher Pincher MP) 165 Home Builders Federation, Reversing the decline of small housebuilders: Reinvigorating entrepreneurialism and building more homes (2017): https://www.hbf. co.uk/documents/6879/HBF_SME_Report_2017_Web.pdf [accessed 26 November 2021] 166 Economic Affairs Committee, Building more homes (1st Report, Session 2016–17, HL Paper 20) 167 Written evidence from Home Builders Federation ( UKH0044 ) 168 Q 67 (Brian Berry) 169 Q 62 (Brian Berry) 170 Written evidence from Land Promoters and Developers’ Federation ( UKH0092 ) 171 Written evidence from LDS ( UKH0100 ) 172 Written evidence from Home Builders Federation ( UKH0044 ) 173 Ibid. 174 Ibid. 175 Q 93 (Rt Hon. Christopher Pincher MP) 176 Ibid. 177 Written evidence from UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence ( UKH0055 ) 178 Q 86 (Brian Berry) 179 Q 76 (Brian Berry) 180 Written evidence from Homes England ( UKH0115 ) 181 Written evidence from UK Cohousing Network ( UKH0033 ) 182 The Bacon Review, House: How putting customers in charge can change everything (2021): https://assets.publishing.service.gov. uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1013928/Bacon_ Review.pdf [accessed 2 December 2021] 183 Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Independent review into scaling up self- build and custom housebuilding: report (21 August 2021): https://www. gov.uk/government/publications/independent-review-into-scaling-up-self- build-and-custom-housebuilding-report [accessed 26 November 2021] 184 Q 94 (Rt Hon. Christopher Pincher MP) 185 Written evidence from LDS ( UKH0100 ) 186 British Business Bank, ‘British Business Bank ENABLE Build programme launches, offering further support for smaller housebuilder finance’ (7 May 2019): https://www.british- business-bank.co.uk/press-release/british-business-bank-enable- build-programme-launches-offering-further-support-for-smaller-housebuilder-finance/ [accessed 26 November 2021] 187 Q 107 (Rt Hon. Christopher Pincher MP) 188 Home Builders Federation, Reversing the decline of small housebuilders: Reinvigorating entrepreneurialism and building more homes < Back Next > © Parliamentary copyright 2021 A-Z index Glossary Contact us Freedom of Information Jobs Using this website Copyright Privacy notice Cookie policy Cookie Manager House of Lords - Meeting housing demand - Built Environment Committee Accessibility Email alerts RSS feeds Contact us Home Parliamentary business MPs, Lords & offices About Parliament Get involved Visiting Education House of Commons House of Lords What's on Bills & legislation Committees Publications & records Parliament TV News Topics Meeting housing demand Contents Chapter 5: Planning
From: Built Environment Committee, 1st Report - Meeting housing demand, 10 January 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 28 March 2022 (deadline 10 March 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The Government welcomes the Committee's report and says it is "taking action on a number of the issues identified", agreeing with some recommendations while disagreeing with others, including on home ownership schemes and the Apprenticeship Levy.
- It "disagrees with the report's assessment that homeownership schemes do not provide good value for money", citing independent evaluations and its own evaluation of Help to Buy.
- On older people's housing, it is launching a new taskforce "this year", chaired by the Minister for Housing, to look at better choice, quality and security of housing.
- It does "not intend to set out a proportion" of Affordable Homes Programme funding for social housing, though "around half" of the affordable homes are to be for social and affordable rent.
- On the Apprenticeship Levy it says it has "no plans to review" it. On planning fees it is "exploring options" to increase them, and on local plans it will make an announcement "in due course".