Industry welcomes Rowley back as housing minister

The industry has welcomed the return of Lee Rowley as housing and planning minister, but some have raised concerns over why a change was needed. The North East Derbyshire MP and former Westminster councillor was appointed to the role in this week’s cabinet reshuffle, following the sacking of Rachel Maclean. Maclean had been in the post for nine months and six days, making her one of the longest-serving housing ministers since the last general election. The previous five incumbents lasted an average of 18 weeks each. The shortest-serving of those was Lee Rowley, who held the post for just 48 days during Liz Truss’s premiership in 2022. Maclean was also well-liked by the industry, which considered her to be efficient, with a good grasp of the brief. BPF chief executive Melanie Leech said Maclean was “hardworking, engaged and took a deep interest in the benefits of good housing”. She added that she wished Rowley well in the role. “While he will have a full in-tray to deal with, not least renters’ reform, leasehold reform and a large number of planning issues, at least he is already sighted on the strategic issues facing the department and has a strong understanding of local government and the need to ensure that planning and place-making is well resourced within that,” said Leech. Rowley has served as local government minister in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities since his brief tenure as housing minister last year. Leech added: “We particularly welcome his embrace of a multi-tenure approach to housing supply, which is pragmatic in recognising the contribution that sectors such as build-to-rent, PBSA and retirement living can make. Overall, we hope that he puts his experience to maximum effect representing the views of our sector ahead of next week’s crucial Autumn Statement.” RTPI boss Victoria Hills echoed the dismay that someone as well-regarded as Maclean should have been sacked. “Rachel Maclean proved herself to be a keen supporter of the planning profession, calling for increased resources for the planning system and acknowledging the hurdles planners face at our recent national conference. As we welcome Lee Rowley back to the department as minister of state for housing and planning, I urge him to take forward Rachel’s hard work to continue building a stronger planning system for the future.” It is understood that Rowley, despite being seen as a solid choice by many in the industry, was not the first to be offered the job during the reshuffle. Several MPs, including former Cabinet Office minister Jeremy Quin, are reported to have turned down the “poisoned chalice” role. Pocket Living founder and chief executive Marc Vlessing was also disappointed at the change. “What we really need is political stability and resolute focus on tackling the housing crisis and getting new homes built, not a presentational government reshuffle,” he said. The reshuffle also saw Thérèse Coffey sacked as environment secretary and replaced by former health secretary Steve Barclay. It has been rumoured that Coffey was also offered the housing minister brief. Simon McWhirter, deputy chief executive of the UK Green Building Council, said: “Just as no company could hope to deliver strong results if they’d had 16 changes of top executive in 13 years, the unprecedented turnover of ministers leading our portfolios has hampered progress in the built environment at the very time that we needed to be accelerating towards net zero. “We urge the government to make the most of the coming months by finally investing in the proven, scalable and transformative changes that are urgently needed to tackle the interlocking climate and cost of living emergencies.” To send feedback, e-mail piers.wehner@eg.co.uk or tweet @PiersWehner or @EGPropertyNews Photo by CC BY