Oral Answers to Questions

Clive Efford Excerpts

Monday 12th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

I also read the National Audit Office report with interest. I was pleased to see that it made very positive comments about the Department’s work in getting to grips with the challenges across local government and making sure that the sector is properly resourced and looks forward to the reviews that are being put in place to improve funding and business rates retention.

[Clive Efford (Eltham) (Lab)]

13. What resources he is providing to local authorities to build council housing.

[The Minister for Housing (Dominic Raab)]

The Government are committed to delivering a new generation of council homes, and we are providing local authorities with the tools and resources to deliver them.

[Clive Efford]

In 2009-10, the last Labour Government had 40,000 housing starts in one year. This Government have financed 199 in the last six months. Given that we have such a shortage of social housing and a homelessness crisis, how do the Government explain this risible performance?

[Dominic Raab]

For the record on the hon. Gentleman’s figures, local authorities have built over 10,000 homes since 2010-11 compared with under 3,000 in the 13 years of the last Labour Government. We are restless to do much more, and that is why we are raising the housing revenue account borrowing cap by up to £1 billion to make sure that we spur local house building as far and as wide as we can.