London (Parliament Politic Magazine) – Today, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced that the government will fulfill its manifesto pledge to construct one million homes during this parliamentary term. Today, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has declared that the government will fulfill its manifesto pledge to construct 1 million homes during this Parliament.
Achieving this ambitious goal would mark a significant milestone in the government’s already triumphant housebuilding strategy. Notably, since 2010, an impressive 2.2 million new homes have been completed, enabling countless individuals to embrace the joys of homeownership.
According to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak: ‘’We won’t do that by concreting over the countryside – our plan is to build the right homes where there is the most need and where there is local support, in the heart of Britain’s great cities’’.
Prime Minister Aims to Transform Housing Crisis
The pledge is being made in anticipation of a significant address by Michael Gove, the Secretary for Housing and Levelling Up, scheduled for today, Monday 24 July. During this speech, Gove will unveil fresh initiatives aimed at streamlining the planning system and constructing additional homes in suitable locations with the approval of local communities.
Instead of covering the countryside with concrete, the government will concentrate on prioritizing construction in inner-city areas where demand is highest and growth is limited. One such area is Cambridge, where a new urban quarter will be established to unleash the city’s complete potential as a hub of innovation and talent.
Collaborating with local leaders and communities in Cambridge, this new quarter will provide aesthetically pleasing residences, complemented by state-of-the-art facilities featuring cutting-edge laboratories and green spaces. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reveals:
‘’Today I can confirm that we will meet our manifesto commitment to build 1 million homes over this Parliament. That’s a beautiful new home for a million individual families in every corner of our country. We need to keep going because we want more people to realize the dream of owning their own home’’.
PM Announces Ambitious Scheme to Build 1 Million Homes in the Next Five Years
The government is committed to addressing the obstacles within the planning system that hinder development, impede growth, and discourage investment. To achieve this, the following measures will be implemented. The first is promptly initiating a £24 million Planning Skills Delivery Fund to eliminate backlogs and ensure the availability of competent professionals.
No doubt, establishing a new team of highly skilled planners and experts, known as the “super-squad,” with the primary objective of streamlining major housing projects across the planning system. This team will initially focus on accelerating our plans in the city of Cambridge.
Developers will be required to contribute additional fees to enhance and sustain a superior and more efficient planning service. These contributions will aid in the revitalization of the high street by introducing new opportunities to convert shops, takeaways, and betting shops into residential spaces. Simultaneously, bureaucratic obstacles will be eliminated to facilitate the conversion of barns, agricultural structures, and abandoned warehouses for alternative purposes.
The introduction of new regulations granting homeowners greater flexibility in expanding their properties, such as extending homes, converting lofts, and renovating new buildings, will facilitate the transformation of existing properties into new living spaces.
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PMs Plan to Address Housing Crisis Starts Construction of 1 Million New Homes
A comprehensive assessment of the extension of permitted development rights aims to simplify the process for homeowners to build upwards and outwards, incorporating new extensions and loft conversions, all while safeguarding the interests of neighboring residents. Community support is crucial for the successful implementation of these plans.
The Housing Secretary has emphasized the importance of ensuring that any developments are aesthetically pleasing, equipped with appropriate infrastructure, and designed with the needs and preferences of the local residents in mind.
Poppy Gustafsson, CEO, Darktrace reveals: “Cambridge is a fantastic place not just to start, but also to scale a technology business. We have benefited greatly from being so close to the talented technology innovators of the future, bringing them into our rapidly growing business where they’re developing extraordinary AI solutions’’
Policy Exchange is thrilled to witness the integration of crucial recommendations from our recently published Placemaking Matrix into the Government’s latest plans. Our report, alongside our pioneering efforts, has played a significant role in shaping this development.