黑洞社区

At the Conservative Party Conference the housing minister Gavin Barwell completely dismissed Jeremy Corbyn鈥檚 pledge to significantly increase the construction of council homes, by suggesting it will actually lead to further divide in the society rather than closing the gap, and I think he鈥檚 probably right.

Although Barwell鈥檚 statement is controversial, and won鈥檛 be well received by everyone, it鈥檚 difficult to argue a case where vastly increasing the delivery of council housing is ever going to solve the current affordability crisis felt by open-market renters and buyers - those people who will never 鈥榪ualify鈥� for council housing.

If anything, it will just further drive the wedge between haves and have nots and do nothing to bridge the ever increasing social divide.

Of course it is a key responsibility of a civilised society to continue to provide housing solutions to anyone in desperate need, however, what is needed is a fairer system - a system which doesn鈥檛 take with one hand and give back with the other (why pummel people on low incomes with income tax and then feed them housing benefit?), and a system which doesn鈥檛 consign people to council/social housing for generations, while doing little or nothing to service the crying need for good quality homes for people on normal wages in normal circumstances.

It鈥檚 encouraging that there are at last noises coming out of central government which aren鈥檛 looking at overcomplicating what is essentially a very simple marketplace

To find a solution to the housing crisis that will work long term, it鈥檚 time to start doing things differently. Why is it that housing should be badged as affordable in perpetuity? Why aren鈥檛 we as a society looking harder at ways of delivering homes for all, and ensuring that they鈥檙e delivered by the right people?

Also, the government鈥檚 commitment at the conference to the guaranteed purchase scheme should be welcomed. Not only will this give some (particularly smaller) developers confidence to increase the speed at which they deliver homes, it may also have the consequence of more homes being built for people rather than speculators.

With an exit price secured, developers will be less incentivised to sell to off-plan investors looking for capital growth, who then flip the units pumping the price up (a major cause of whole market inflation in London). They鈥檒l be more likely to hold on to homes and sell to those people who actually want to live in them. Again, revolutionary, or achingly simple?

It鈥檚 encouraging that there are at last noises coming out of central government which aren鈥檛 looking at overcomplicating what is essentially a very simple marketplace. People need homes, at a price which won鈥檛 cripple them. Society needs homes for all, which don鈥檛 create a paradigm which further divides us.

The new minister for housing, and the new chair of the HCA have made a storming start - let鈥檚 hope that they stay focused on the simplicity of the problem and continue to stimulate a clear and simple response.