Oral Answers to Questions

Vikki Slade Excerpts

Monday 2nd November 2026 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Pennycook]

As my hon. Friend will be aware, the Chancellor committed an additional £1.5 billion for the social and affordable homes programme at the Budget, taking its total allocation to over £40 billion. In August, we announced initial funding allocations for the programme, with £9.58 billion being awarded to 33 strategic partners outside of London. Over £16 billion remains available outside of London across the lifetime of the programme. Homes England will confirm scheme-by-scheme allocations via the continuous market engagement route in the usual way.

[Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)]

I welcome the Government’s focus on first-time buyers, because so many young people cannot get their first step on the ladder. My concern with the properties that are being built—not on the green belt but within town-centre boundaries—is that first-time buyer properties are being manipulated out of the system, in the same way that affordable homes have been on the green belt. I know the Government have done some stuff around the green belt golden rules, but what are they doing to ensure that we have first-time buyer homes on every development?

[Matthew Pennycook]

I am not sure that I quite understand what the hon. Lady means by homes being manipulated out of the system, but I am happy to sit down with her and have a conversation about it.