The Government has announced plans to change their formula for deciding where houses are built.
Previously, the Government had used an algorithm that determined which areas were in need of new housing, which critics argued it lead to a London-centric approach, with the majority of houses being in the South East.
The Government has now updated their formula to have more of a focus on the North and Midlands, areas which are in desperate need of affordable housing.
The Government is prioritising building new housing on brownfields in 20 urban areas across England, making particular use of unused land and buildings to minimise costs while delivering affordable, modern and eco-friendly homes.
Housing Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP said:
“This Government wants to build more homes as a matter of social justice, for intergenerational fairness and to create jobs for working people. We are reforming our planning system to ensure it is simpler and more certain without compromising standards of design, quality and environmental protection.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated and magnified patterns that already existed, creating a generational opportunity for the repurposing of offices and retail as housing and for urban renewal. We want this to be an opportunity for a new trajectory for our major cities – one which helps to forge a new country beyond Covid - which is more beautiful, healthier, more prosperous, more neighbourly and where more people have the security and dignity of a home of their own.
“A new expert Urban Centre Recovery Task Force has been set up to advise on the development and regeneration of our great town and city centres. The Task Force includes Peter Freeman, the visionary behind the redevelopment of Kings’ Cross and new Chair of Homes England.”
On BBC Radio 4’s Today program, Mr Jenrick defended the Government’s former plans by saying that only Covid has halted the Government’s manifesto promise of 300,000 new homes every year.
