Housing

Debate between Linda Riordan and Gloria De Piero

Wednesday 5th September 2012 Commons Chamber

[Gloria De Piero (Ashfield) (Lab)]

We have hundreds of people on the waiting list in Ashfield. We need not only the new homes but the jobs as well. We are also lucky enough to have a lot of green spaces there, and we would like to keep them green. Does my hon. Friend agree that, wherever possible, it is always best to build those homes on brownfield sites?

[Mrs Riordan]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. Many such brownfield sites have been identified as suitable for building on.

On the evidence of the past two years, the coalition Government are failing miserably. Since 2010, hardly any new houses have been built in Halifax and Calderdale. Indeed, only six new houses were built in the last quarter. It is no wonder that first-time buyers in my constituency are so frustrated. The lack of policies for growth in the north gives economic and social resources to the south, and the problem becomes one of a cycle of more job losses. I hear Conservative Members constantly calling for more growth-led policies in the south-east. If they think that the problem is bad within the M25, they should try heading north of the Watford Gap to see the effect of the lack of growth-led policies there.