New Homes Target

Baroness Taylor of Stevenage Excerpts

Tuesday 21st October 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Young of Cookham]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what progress they have made towards their target of building 1.5 million new homes.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (Baroness Taylor of Stevenage) (Lab)]

My Lords, our Government remain committed to delivering 1.5 million homes over this Parliament. Through major planning reform and investment, we are breaking through the barriers to development and will build the homes this country needs. Our bold planning reforms alone will drive housebuilding in the UK to its highest rate in 40 years. The spending review confirmed the biggest boost to social and affordable housing investment in a generation, alongside significant investment through the national housing bank, reforms to the building safety regulator, a new mortgage guarantee scheme, a support package for SME builders and work on a comprehensive construction skills package. We are laying the strong foundations for a generational rocket boost to housebuilding.

[Lord Young of Cookham (Con)]

My Lords, 1.5 million is exactly what the country needs, but few outside government believe that this target is achievable. One in four of those homes would have to be built in London. London’s target for this year is 88,000 homes; by June, 4,000 had been completed. One reason that developers give for this slow progress is the target for affordable homes of up to 35%. Sites that were viable until recently are no longer. Can the Minister confirm that discussions are now taking place in Birmingham and London with a view to watering down the Government’s affordable homes programme in order to drive up completions? As one developer said, 35% of nothing is not a sensible policy.

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I know the paper to which the noble Lord refers. With his ministerial experience, he will know that I cannot comment on leaked documents. However, let us make no mistake that London and the mayor are extremely ambitious about delivering the housing that London needs. The Government recognise its unique challenges, including higher build and labour costs, which have contributed to falls in starts and completions in the capital. We are working in partnership with the mayor and the GLA to accelerate housing delivery and are supporting the development of an ambitious next London Plan. We are already taking action to accelerate housebuilding through planning reform and unlocking large-scale developments such as at Euston. We are also supporting stalled sites in the capital via the new homes accelerator. London will be allocated up to 30% of the £39 billion social and affordable homes programme, granting approximately £11.7 billion to the GLA to support housing delivery in London.

[Baroness Butler-Sloss (CB)]

Just after the war, a large number of prefab houses were built, with great success, and they lasted very well. Is there any good reason why one could not put up a lot of prefabricated houses, which would go a long way towards this number the Government want?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I remember those days and know how fond some of the inhabitants of those prefabricated homes were. Things are moving on; we are now looking at modern methods of construction homes, which could make an important contribution. They deliver high-quality, energy-efficient homes more quickly while creating new and diverse jobs in the sector. We have undertaken bold action to support housebuilders, including in the modern methods of construction sector, reforming the planning system, unblocking sites and increasing supply. We have developed a publicly available specification for MMC homes, which will bring greater clarity to the insurance and warranties market and support the delivery of the quality homes we all want.

[Baroness Thornhill (LD)]

My Lords, we clearly have grey-belt/green-belt confusion when planning inspectors are approving more than 70% of major residential grey-belt appeals. These appeals are expensive, time-consuming and quite obviously delay housing delivery. Given this clear disconnect between local interpretation and national policy success at appeal, will the Government please issue some clear, unambiguous guidance regarding grey-belt criteria, as in paragraph 155, to clarify the current confusion which clearly exists and helps no one?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I am very happy to take back whether we need some more communication on this. We have been very clear that we take a brownfield-first approach, but we know that brownfield alone will not be enough to deliver the country’s needs. That is why we have asked all local authorities that cannot meet their needs to review green belt and to identify opportunities. We expect them to prioritise the development of brownfield and the low-quality grey-belt land that the noble Baroness referred to. High-performing green-belt land and land safeguarded for environmental reasons will still be protected. The green-belt reforms support a more strategic and targeted approach to green belt. However, as I said, we are looking at brownfield first. Then, we expect local authorities to look at grey belt. I will take back to the department whether we need to communicate any further on that issue.

[Lord Sahota (Lab)]

My Lords, before I ask the question, I wish all noble Lords a happy Diwali.

What role do local authorities play in achieving the 1.5 million homes target, and how are they supported?

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I am grateful to my noble friend, particularly for his Diwali wishes. Unfortunately, I had to miss the Diwali celebration at home yesterday due to being here on the planning Bill, but it seems very appropriate that we have a festival of light at this time. I think we all need some light, so happy Diwali to all those celebrating.

Of course, local authorities are key partners in the delivery of 1.5 million homes—in the delivery of the social and affordable homes that we know we need, in tackling homelessness across our country and in developing some of the very important regeneration schemes which I have seen some fantastic examples of as I have gone round the country. Our job is to make sure that the planning system works effectively for them. Local authorities are uniquely able to look at local housing needs in their area and make provision for those. They are key partners in delivery, and we work with them constantly to see whether there is more we can do to help them do just that.

[Lord Geddes (Con)]

The Minister in her reply to the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Butler-Sloss, mentioned energy efficiency. What requirements are His Majesty’s Government making that all new homes should have either photovoltaic or solar panels on them?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

We have made it clear that we expect new homes to be built with PV panels wherever possible, although it is not possible in every instance. Later this year, we will bring out our future homes standard, which will set clear expectations around the energy efficiency of homes. It is important not only for all householders that their homes are efficient for the purposes of lower bills but for the planet that we are doing the best we can with the energy we have.

[The Earl of Devon (CB)]

My Lords, to return to local authorities, have the Government assessed the impact on their 1.5 million homes target of local government reorganisation? I sat last year on the Devon Housing Commission chaired by the noble Lord, Lord Best, and it found that one of the biggest challenges for development in the county was local authority and planning departments. I know for a fact that, over the next two or three years, every planning department in Devon will be challenged by the considerable reorganisation due to take place.

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

That is an appropriate question for today because I met the leader of Plymouth City Council just this morning, and we talked about some of the issues facing Devon. We understand that the reorganisation of local government adds to the considerable pressures that local authorities already face. However, it is essential to ensure that local authorities are as efficient and sustainable as possible. We are working closely with our local authorities on that project. We have helped our local planning authorities with resourcing through an increase in planning fees for householders and other applications, as well as through measures in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to enable local planning authorities to set their own planning fees to cover costs. We have also provided a £46 million package of support to help train and build capacity in local planning authorities.

[Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)]

My Lords, in an Oral Question in September, my noble friend Lord Jamieson raised a concern with the Minister about the proposed removal of the lower rate of landfill tax for inert construction waste, a change that could reportedly add up to £25,000 to the cost of building a single new home. At the time, the Minister did not directly respond to the question; she promised a written response that has not been received. Given the Government’s ambition for 1.5 million homes in this Parliament, can the Minister now clarify their position on this proposal and explain how such measures would support, rather than hinder, their wider housing delivery ambition?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

The treatment of landfill is important for the environment, so it is key that we deal with that efficiently. I attended an SME round table as part of the APPG for SME House Builders last week; they raised the issue with me, and I will take it back to the department. I thought that I had replied to the noble Lord, Lord Jamieson, but I will go through and make sure that we did so. This is a particular issue for SME builders, so we are thinking that through and will issue a response shortly.