Burnham’s flagship council housebuilding pledge faces £7bn blackhole to meet demand
The New Economics Foundation warns that the government’s pledge for the biggest council housebuilding drive since the post-war period may fall short without another £7bn for its housing programme. The warning adds pressure ahead of the next spending review, after the Budget announced an extra £1.5bn.
The programme is worth more than £40bn over 10 years and is projected to deliver an average of 18,000 social homes a year. Housing charities and the NEF say England needs 90,000 annually; councils built an average of 103,000 a year at the post-war peak, but only 2,000 annually in the five years to 2025. The report says an additional £7bn, spent earlier in the programme, could help fund more than 100,000 council and social homes by 2030 and put England on track for 90,000 a year by 2032-33.
In short
- NEF says the housing plan needs another £7bn.
- Current plans project 18,000 social homes a year.
- England needs an estimated 90,000 annually.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
A programme averaging 18,000 social homes a year is far below the 90,000 annual need estimated by housing charities and the NEF, while councils built much more at the post-war peak. Adding £7bn earlier could expand affordable supply sooner, help meet demand and give councils a stronger role in addressing the shortage.
The case against
A £40bn, 10-year programme is already a substantial public commitment, and the Budget has added £1.5bn; the case for another £7bn must be weighed against other spending needs and the cost of borrowing or taxation. The reported estimates do not by themselves establish that this extra funding would deliver the projected homes, or that 90,000 a year is the right target for the programme.
Explained simply
Councils build homes owned by local authorities, while social housing is rented at below-market rates through councils and housing associations. After building large numbers of council homes in the decades after the second world war, councils have built far fewer in recent years. Housing charities say England needs many more affordable homes each year to meet demand.
The government’s 10-year housing programme is intended to increase the supply of social homes, with councils and housing associations among those expected to deliver them. Its funding and the pace at which money is available shape how many homes can be built and when. The next spending review will set out government spending plans, including for housing.