Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extension of the Housing Revenue Account borrowing cap in local authority areas of high affordability pressure.

We have announced a rise in the Housing Revenue Account borrowing cap by a total of up to £1 billion in areas of high affordability pressure for local authorities who are ready to start building new homes. This will help to deliver the new generation of council house building that the Prime Minister announced recently.

We need to ensure that the housing market works for all parts of the community. So we need action on all fronts to build the homes that this country needs. High demand areas with affordability pressures are especially in need of affordable homes, so it is right that we focus this support on them.

We shall shortly set out the details of what constitutes high affordability and the criteria used in determining how this support is allocated.