Oral Answers to Questions

Afzal Khan Excerpts

Monday 22nd January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Jake Berry]

I am not aware of any meetings taking place or advice being given. However, I will check the records when I return to the Department and write to the hon. Gentleman if there have been such meetings.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

15. What recent assessment he has made of trends in the number of new homes for social rent since 2010.

[The Minister for Housing (Dominic Raab)]

We have delivered 357,000 affordable homes since 2010—more than in the preceding seven years. That includes 257,000 for rent and 128,000 for social rent.

[Afzal Khan]

Will the Secretary of State adopt Labour’s plans to lift the borrowing cap on councils’ housing revenue accounts, which could alone build 80,000 council homes, according to the Local Government Association?

[Dominic Raab]

We are not going to take on Labour’s plans in this area or any other, because frankly they are not sustainable. We are going to increase the affordable homes budget to £9 billion up to 2021. We are restless to deliver more affordable homes, including for social rent. The hon. Gentleman may like to know that in the past year there were 1,100 new housing starts in Manchester, and we are talking to the Mayor of Manchester about the housing deal, which will include a social housing component.