Housing and Planning: Policy Changes

Lord Bishop of St Albans Excerpts

Monday 24th July 2023 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Swinburne (Con)]

I will have to get back to the noble Lord with those specific figures from the department.

[The Lord Bishop of St Albans]

My Lords, one of the challenges facing rural areas is an acute shortage of affordable housing. Statistics from the National Housing Federation show that social housing waiting lists in rural areas have grown by 31%, compared with just 3% in urban areas. That is having a huge impact on rural sustainability as the average age in those areas increases, leading to the closure of schools, post offices and so on. What is being done specifically to unblock this logjam in providing more affordable housing in rural areas?

[Baroness Swinburne (Con)]

I thank the noble Lord Prelate for that question—