The Government should ‘honour’ its white paper commitment to help London councils build more affordable housing, think tank and councillors say.
An open letter from Centre for London has called on Whitehall to follow through on its housing white paper promise to use ‘all the levers at its disposal’ to help councils deliver affordable housing in the capital.
Signed by a number of prominent local authority figures, including president of the Local Government Association (LGA) Lord Kerslake, the letter warned London boroughs were ‘hampered’ in their efforts to meet housing needs by the high cost of land in the capital and restrictions on funding.
Research by the Centre for London found the price of land can account for more than half of the cost of building a standard flat in a central London location.
The letter called on the Government to cut ‘red tape’ in three areas in order to make it easier for councils to provide affordable accommodation.
It urged Downing Street to allow prudential borrowing against rental revenues and rethink reforms such as forced sale of high value council housing.
Restrictions on the use of right-to-buy receipts should also be relaxed, the letter said. This could include extending the period within which they can be spent and increasing the proportion of the cost of a new home they can fund.
Finally, the signatories called for there to be flexibility to spend funds across borough boundaries to facilitate enhanced collaboration and deliver greater quantities of affordable housing.
