Pulse.Assent

The number of new homes delivered each year has been increasing since 2010, but the Prime Minister will say there is more we can do to build the homes the country needs.

Speaking ahead of a visit to a housing development in Barnet, North London today (Thursday 16 November), which coincides with the publication of new statistics on housebuilding, Theresa May said:

“For decades we simply have not been building enough homes, nor have we been building them quickly enough, and we have seen prices rise.

“The number of new homes being delivered each year has been increasing since 2010, but there is more we can do.

“We must get back into the business of building the good quality new homes for people who need them most.

“That is why I have made it my mission to build the homes the country needs and take personal charge of the Government’s response.

“Today I am seeing the work now underway to put this right and, in coming weeks and months, my Government will be going further to ensure that we build more homes, more quickly.

“This will be a long journey and it will take time for us to fix the broken housing market – but I am determined to build a Britain fit for the future.”

Later today Communities Secretary Sajid Javid will deliver a speech on housing at the Temple Meads Quarter in Bristol to reinforce the government’s approach to back housing of all tenures, including more social housing.

The Communities Secretary is expected to say:

“The generation crying out for help with housing is not over-entitled. They don’t want the world handed to them on a plate. They want simple fairness, moral justice, the opportunity to play by the same rules enjoyed by those who came before them.

“Without affordable, secure, safe housing we risk creating a rootless generation, drifting from one short-term tenancy to the next, never staying long enough to play a role in their community.

“Our Housing White Paper in February set out our broad vision. It described the scale of the challenge and the need for action on many fronts. Since then we’ve been putting it into action, laying the foundations for hundreds of thousands more homes.

“But there are many, many faults in our housing market, dating back many, many years. If you only fix one you’ll make some progress, but not enough. This is a big problem and we have to think big.”

He will announce that the Government is taking housing associations’ debt off the balance sheet, ensuring housing associations have a stable investment environment to build more homes.

This builds on the Government’s ongoing work to tackle the challenges in the housing sector including:

• Increasing the affordable housing budget by an additional £2 billion to over £9 billion, to deliver more homes at social rent and potentially leverage investment from housing associations and councils of up to £5 billion;
• Setting a long term rent deal for councils and housing associations in England from 2020 – helping support them build more homes;
• Creating the £3 billion Home Building Fund last year to build more houses across England. Over £1.7 billion has now been committed, and will mean over 100,000 new homes built across England;
• Publishing the Housing White Paper which set out the Government’s plans, including ensuring councils release more land for housing, and giving them new powers to ensure that developers actually build homes once they’re given planning permission to do so;
• Introducing schemes like Help to Buy to support people who are struggling right now – this has already helped over 130,000 more families with the deposit they need to buy their own home. We have now invested a further £10 billion in Help to Buy to help a further 135,000 households by 2021; and
• Meeting big and small developers, local authorities and housing associations to ask them to all play their part in increasing the number of homes being built. The Prime Minister and the Communities Secretary recently held a meeting with developers and housing associations in Downing Street to discuss actions needed to remove the barriers they are facing in building new homes.

Since April 2010, around 346,000 affordable homes have been delivered, including 240,000 for rent. More than twice as much council housing has been built since 2010 than in the previous 13 years.

A Downing Street spokesperson said:

“The Prime Minister and Chancellor co-hosted a roundtable this afternoon with leading figures from the UK tech industry, ahead of a reception at Downing Street attended by entrepreneurs and innovators from across the country.

“The Prime Minister began by welcoming the huge contribution that the tech sector makes to the whole of the UK. She promised to listen to the industry’s views on what more Government can do to help it go from strength to strength.

“The Chancellor said Government would be ambitious as it works to make the most of the incredible potential of the tech sector, to break down the barriers facing entrepreneurs and to drive future growth.

“On Brexit, the Prime Minister said she had no doubt that the UK will remain a brilliant place to build a tech business after we have left the EU, and reiterated that she is determined to get the best deal for our country. There was agreement during the discussion on the need for Britain to take advantage of the opportunity of Brexit to be bold and ambitious in the action we’re taking to boost the tech sector.

“There was also consensus on the need to make sure we’re attracting the brightest and best talent to the UK. Eileen Burbidge, Chair of Tech City UK, welcomed the PM’s announcement of an increase in visas for tech talent as being exactly what the sector needs.

“There was a discussion on skills, and the need to ensure people of all ages and backgrounds have the digital skills to get ahead and take up the good, high-quality jobs on offer in the tech industry. And there was agreement on the importance of continued investment in infrastructure, including superfast broadband.

“Nick Sturge, CEO of Engine Shed, welcomed the new investment to expand Tech City UK into a nationwide network, which he said has the potential to raise the profile of regional tech hubs and entrepreneurs outside of London.

“Culture Secretary Karen Bradley closed the roundtable by reaffirming the Government’s ongoing commitment to supporting the sector and to maintaining this engagement through future meetings, to ensure the UK remains at the forefront of innovation and technology in the years ahead.”

Rare species like the marsh fritillary butterfly and willow tit bird have been given a conservation boost today, with Natural England officially recognising the Mid Cornwall Moors as one of the country’s most important wildlife sites.

Following a four-month public consultation, Natural England has confirmed the designation of the Mid Cornwall Moors as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), giving the area legal protection for its important wildlife and habitats.

This brings certainty and purpose to conservation work in Mid Cornwall, where the rich mix of heathland, woodland, and wildflower meadows provides a vital sanctuary for wildlife.

Wesley Smyth, manager of Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly team in Natural England, said:

This rich and diverse landscape of Mid Cornwall is home to an array of rare plants and insects, alongside one of the highest densities of willow tit breeding pairs in England.

That’s why we’ve designated this area as a Site of Special Scientific Interest, recognising its vital contribution to our natural heritage and helping its precious wildlife thrive for generations to come.

Natural England is working with landowners and local organisations, such as the Cornwall Wildlife Trust and Butterfly Conservation, to create the perfect conditions for the rare marsh fritillary butterfly. With further help from the Eden Project and Highways England, swathes of devil’s-bit scabious – the main food plant for the marsh fritillary caterpillars – have been grown and planted alongside the A30 road corridor.

Philip Hambly, Chairman of Cornwall Butterfly Conservation (CBC), said:

CBC have been working with Natural England in order to help protect the rare Marsh Fritillary butterfly in Mid Cornwall, and this confirmation of SSSI protection will help future conservation efforts. If we want to protect our rare species such as this, we must manage their habitats carefully and make sure that we are doing so on a landscape scale.

As part of the area’s newly-designated status, another project seeks to protect the habitat of the willow tit, which has virtually disappeared from large parts of the UK and whose national population has declined by an estimated 81% since the mid-1990s.

The Mid Cornwall Moors SSSI merges six former SSSIs that previously dotted the landscape around the A30 and east of Indian Queens. The new designation has extended those boundaries and protects around 50% more countryside, connecting important habitats and helping wildlife to withstand pressures from climate change.

The Foreign Secretary updated Mr Ratcliffe on the FCO’s efforts on behalf of his wife, and said that the British Ambassador in Iran had once again raised the case with the Iranians this morning and urged:

• Consular access
• Appropriate medical treatment
• A decision on Richard Ratcliffe’s visa application
• Access for Richard Ratcliffe to see his wife if a visit does go ahead

They discussed Mr Ratcliffe’s recent suggestion of diplomatic protection. The Foreign Secretary and officials outlined that the key question is whether diplomatic protection will have a positive impact on the case, given all the representations that have already been made. They agreed that lawyers should meet in the coming fortnight to discuss it further.

They also talked about the Foreign Secretary’s plan to visit Iran before the end of the year and Richard Ratcliffe’s request to accompany him on that visit. The Foreign Secretary said that our overriding principle in handling this case is to secure a permanent family reunion, not a temporary one. Any decision must be guided by that principle.

The Foreign Secretary concluded the meeting by saying that no stone would be left unturned in the case of Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, and that of our other dual nationals detained in Iran.

Further information

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These works will reduce flood risk to 244 homes, 88 commercial properties and vital infrastructure.

The Newhaven flood alleviation scheme has been developed in partnership with Lewes District Council, East Sussex County Council, the Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and South East LEP. Construction work started on 3 January 2017 following consultation with the local community.

JacksonHyder are designing and building the scheme. Construction has initially focussed on the west bank of the River Ouse, where defences will protect mainly residential properties. Work here has varied from minor measures to plug gaps in existing defences, to sizable sections of new concrete flood wall and earth embankment.

This has included:

• Building a 150-metre-long bund north of Cantell’s Boatyard.
• Building a 130-metre wall built along the edge of the footpath either side of Denton Island Bridge.
• Realigning and raising the flood defence bund at the rear of Huggett’s Green, plus constructing various concrete walls in this area for seating and to support a new floodgate.
• Building a 140-metre-long reinforced concrete wall which runs from near the Swing Bridge to just north of the Ark Pub with access to fishermen’s jetties.
• Raising 20 metres of flood defence bund in West Quay.

With just a few finishing touches to be done on the west bank, focus now shifts to the east bank. Work here has recently started, and the whole scheme is expected to be completed by 2019. Once finished, it will reduce flood risk to approximately 430 homes and 390 commercial properties and vital infrastructure, as well as bringing significant economic benefits to the coastal East Sussex town.

The whole scheme will cost around £18 million, with the majority of funding coming from government in the form of Flood and Coastal Risk Management Grant in Aid (GIA). The ‘Coast to Capital’ and ‘South East’ Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), are each contributing £1.5 million as part of their wider commitment to the regeneration of Newhaven. This partnership approach will both significantly reduce flood risk to the local community, and provide confidence for developers to contribute to the regeneration of Newhaven.

In December 2013 the south coast of England was hit by a storm surge coming down from the North Sea. The storm saw hurricane-force winds and the highest tide in some places for almost 60 years. The tidal surge in the Newhaven area badly affected between 50 and 60 properties in the Railway Road area, as well as closing the railway line between Lewes and Seaford.

Gordon Wilson, Environment Agency Area Flood and Coastal Risk Manager, said:

I am delighted that works have been completed on the west bank at Newhaven, and that residents and businesses will now benefit from a significantly reduced flood risk. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Newhaven community for their support and encouragement throughout the construction period and ask for their continued forbearance, as there will inevitably by some disruption whilst this essential work is completed.

When the flood alleviation scheme is completed in 2019, it will reduce the tidal flood risk to hundreds of homes and a significant number of commercial properties in the area, as well as protecting important local infrastructure such as the road network, railway tracks and the train station. We believe that it will also contribute to the wider regeneration of Newhaven, helping to bring new investment, jobs and homes to the town, and the surrounding area.

Jonathan Sharrock, Chief Executive at Coast to Capital, said:

With the impact of adverse weather being felt across the world and the UK, improving flood defence resilience is of huge importance. We are thrilled to have contributed to a project which will not only protect the economic, social and environmental assets of Newhaven but will also have a direct impact on enhancing regional growth.

Councillor Isabelle Linington, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Environmental Impact, said:

I am very pleased that work is now completed on the west bank which takes us one step further to completion of this scheme that is so vital for local residents, businesses and community.

Further information on the scheme is available by calling 03708 506506, by emailing newhavenfas@environment-agency.gov.uk or by writing to:

Check you are at risk of flooding for information on how to prepare for flooding and the latest flood warnings in your area or ring Floodline on 0345 9881188.

For all media enquiries please contact 0800 141 2743 or email southeastpressoffice1@environment-agency.gov.uk.