These figures demonstrate the disastrous impact of the Tory-led Government’s housing and economic policies and the need for urgent action to build much needed homes and get the economy going again.
The Tory-led Government is failing families in Hyndburn who are in desperate need of a home. We have a growing housing crisis and the Government’s policies are making it worse. Across the country there has been a 68% fall in affordable home starts.
The housing crises has seen an huge growth in people unable to find decent, affordable housing in the private rented sector, unable to access mortgages to buy a new home.
Labour would repeat the bankers’ bonus tax to build 25,000 new affordable homes. Together with our proposed 5% cut to VAT on home improvements, that would mean more homes, that are in a better condition, creating much needed jobs and apprenticeships.
Labour has called on the Government to take action by repeating the bankers’ bonus tax to fund 25,000 new affordable homes while proposing a one year cut in VAT on home improvements, repairs and maintenance to help homeowners, small businesses and create much needed jobs and apprenticeships.
This government needs to think less about grabbing headlines and more about tackling the worsening housing crisis.
Jack Dromey MP, Labour's Shadow Housing Minister said:
"These figures reveal the true extent of the tragic failure of the Tory-led Government's housing and economic policies. The £4 billion cut to the affordable housing budget not only led to a disastrous 68 per cent collapse in affordable house building over the past year but hit the construction and house building industries hard, helping tip us back into double-dip recession.
"The Government was warned time and time again that its policies would make the housing crisis worse - locking families out of the housing market, fuelling rising rents in the private rented sector and leaving more people on housing waiting lists. But Grant Shapps refuses to listen, and instead spins a tale that things are getting better.
"The houses completed over the past year are a legacy of Labour’s affordable housing programme and the action we took to build much needed homes. We would act again now using a tax on bank bonuses to build up to 25,000 affordable homes, fund 100,000 youth jobs and get the economy going again."
Notes:
1. The Homes and Communities Agency Statistics show that:
Starts:
A total of 19,967 homes started on site in 2011-12, a decrease of 65 per cent compared to the 57,648 (revised) homes started in 2010-11.
15,698 homes started were for affordable housing, a decrease of 33,665 or 68 per cent from 2010-11.
See: http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/news/official-housing-statistics-2012
Local
North West region starts
Total Affordable Housing Starts have fallen by over 57% over the last year from 4,407 to 1,883.
2. Grant Shapps claims on Affordable Housing can be found here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmhansrd/cm111031/debtext/111031-0001.htm
3. This fact-check demonstrates that the Affordable Homes were delivered under Labour’s Affordable Housing Programme: http://fullfact.org/factchecks/coalition_takes_credit_affordable_housing-3036
