黑洞社区

The government鈥檚 controversial starter homes policy is breeding 鈥渕istrust鈥� of politicians, Labour鈥檚 shadow housing minister John Healey has warned.

Speaking to 黑洞社区 after , Healey accused the government of misleading voters by claiming starter homes 鈥� which will be capped at 拢450,000 in London and 拢250,000 elsewhere 鈥� will be genuinely affordable.

He said: 鈥淵ou cannot legislate to officially define a home on sale for up to 拢450,000 as 鈥榓ffordable鈥�.

鈥淲hen you misuse language in that way you breed mistrust. They are making the ability to debate and use the idea of 鈥榓ffordable鈥� now redundant.鈥�

Healey said he was confident Labour peers in the House of Lords would secure amendments to the housing and planning bill when it comes under scrutiny at committee stage, starting on Tuesday (9 February).

Healey said one of Labour鈥檚 priorities will be to ensure the bill enables local areas to develop a mix of homes rather than 鈥渂eing forced to use starter homes at the exclusion of everything else鈥�.

Labour鈥檚 other two priorities are to overturn the forced sale of council homes to fund right to buy for housing association tenants and to 鈥減roperly define in legislation鈥� the impact of the planned permission in principle for brownfield sites.

Healey claimed there is 鈥渃ross-party support鈥� for making amendments, citing the Local Government Association鈥檚 warning last week 鈥渓ed by Conservatives鈥� that the bill would result in 80,000 fewer social homes.

He added: 鈥淚t鈥檚 the cross-party arguments that will lead to amendments [鈥�] We will get some changes. It鈥檚 still unclear how far they鈥檒l go and how successful we鈥檒l be.鈥�

Regarding principle permissions for brownfield sites, Healey said: 鈥淎t the moment they鈥檙e so wide open, although the government talks about it being for brownfield sites the legislation allows them to award permission for any site of any nature that is designated in local plans so entirely ride rough shod over any local consultation and decision making that鈥檚 already in place.鈥�

The bill - which has already cleared the House of Commons - has come under heavy fire from critics and sparked protests attended by hundreds of people in London.

Over the weekend, hundreds of people marched against the bill in the capital, including Green Party leader Natalie Bennett.

The former head of the civil service Sir Bob Kerslake used a House of Lords debate on the bill last week to rail against the measures, saying they amounted to social housing 鈥渂eing written out of the script鈥�.

Kerslake, who is also a former chief executive of the Homes and Communities Agency, said: 鈥淚 have real doubts about whether they will actually deliver the new homes of all types that this country so badly needs. As one major and very respected housebuilder said to me recently, where is the additionality in all this?鈥�

Housing minister Brandon Lewis said, when the bill was laid in parliament, that it was a historic moment 鈥渒ick-starting a national crusade to get 1 million homes built by 2020鈥�.