What Labour’s victory means for living

Real estate professionals in the residential sector are optimistic about Labour’s pledge to deliver 1.5m homes while remaining anxious about clarity around its stance on rent control. Sir Keir Starmer won the general election early Friday morning with a huge majority, with Rishi Sunak conceding defeat. Robert Sloss, chief executive of developer Hub, told EG: “Every new government gives the same rhetoric about boosting housing supply, but in reality, little changes. “Planning inefficiencies, new building regulations, nimbyism and viability all serve to constrain supply and perpetuate the UK’s housing shortage across all tenures. So how does the new UK government put words into action to increase the supply of much needed?” He added that some actionable points for Labour would be to rule out rent controls, streamline building regulations, push for greater coordination between the Greater London Authority and London boroughs, harness public-private partnerships for living-led regeneration, and embrace a broader interpretation of housing need. Sloss said: “The housing debate has traditionally been driven by build-to-sell market. People often need housing for segments of their life, rather than a permanent place. Central government needs to embrace the potential of professionally managed rented residential, co-living and student accommodation – all typologies which offer excellent living solutions for people at different points of their lives. A high-quality rented sector can deliver a much more dynamic housing market and promote social mobility.” Build-to-rent Build-to-rent leaders have called for Labour to provide political clarity, and push for planning reform to aid the sector, and meet the demands of the housing market. At Grainger, chief executive Helen Gordon said: “We look forward to working with the new Labour government to support them in achieving the delivery of 1.5 million new homes, while driving economic growth nationally. We are optimistic that with the new government in place, now is the time to move forward with implementing measures to improve standards for the 5m-plus rental households across the UK, creating a better experience for renters, while supporting landlords and encouraging investment into more much-needed high-quality rental homes.” Rick de Blaby, chief executive of Get Living, said: “Today’s general election result has provided some much-needed clarity after a very uncertain political period. Now we quite simply need to get going. We know it’s impossible to solve the country’s problems overnight, but as we find ourselves amid a nationwide housing crisis where new homes of all tenures are badly needed, what we urgently need is a grand vision and a comprehensive plan to fix this crisis, which recognises development as a force for good and enables us to attract the capital required to build. “Everyone knows that our planning process is not fit for purpose and is holding the UK back from delivering at the scale that we could and should be. We welcome any support that will help alleviate these issues but are also mindful that with any increase in housing must come the essential infrastructure to support it. It will be interesting to see how Labour intends to progress its plans around new towns. On paper, this would help to bridge the gap but there are some concerns around the viability of these projects. My view is that, where possible, the industry needs to be using its expertise to deliver the substantial infrastructure required to create places that will stand the test of time.” Barry Jessup, managing director at Socius, said: “With a significant majority, there are some easy, quick wins for Labour if they want to ‘back the builders’ and get the economy moving quickly. First, they could increase the share of business rates retained by authorities for the first five years, say from 50% to 75%, to create another incentive to bring forward commercial development while also supporting local services. “Next, they can accelerate the regeneration of town and city centres by introducing a period of permitted development rights for obsolete offices to residential, but only if they are rented and professionally operated for a minimum of 10 years. This would create more dynamic communities than homes for sale and help attract the next generation of talent to work and live in town and city centres. “Finally, shifting CIL and s106 payments to the end rather than beginning of developments could improve developer cash flow and ensure fewer projects stall at an early stage.” Retirement living John Tonkiss, chief executive of McCarthy Stone, has called for Labour to “use its mandate to ensure older people are no longer the forgotten part of the policy debate”. He said: “Many of those aged 75 and over want to move somewhere better suited to their changing needs, but too often they find they are left with no choice but to move into residential care. The UK needs a revolution in its delivery of high-quality housing suitable for its ageing population, be it more bungalows, retirement communities, better care options or incentives to downsize. “That’s why McCarthy Stone is calling on ministers to swiftly implement the recommendations made by the Older People’s Housing Taskforce and to reform the National Planning Policy Framework to ensure an adequate supply of older people’s housing. “Moving to a home better suited to their needs is not only good for older people, but it also addresses many of society’s challenges – it will help get Britain building again, it will unlock investment and growth, it will free up existing homes for younger people, and it will reduce pressure on the NHS. The new Labour government can help older people to become our silver saviours.” Affordable housing Industry leaders in affordable housing said public-private partnerships and Labour signalling the creation of government-led delivery vehicles will result in the much quicker delivery of affordable homes across tenures. Marc Vlessing, Pocket Living chair and founder, said: “Labour’s landslide victory can be the catalyst for a radical reset of the UK’s ailing housing sector. Only through a return to successful public-private partnerships and bold new government-led delivery vehicles can the country’s biggest problem be solved. Without this, millions will see their lives blighted for decades to come. “The delivery of homes is difficult. Planning reform is inevitably contentious. There is not enough capacity in the system. Ministers should quickly engage with industry to ensure a deliverable package of reforms and, crucially, funding. The SME sector is at its smallest since the 1980s, and the government will never hit its 300,000-homes-a-year target unless it can revive this sector. This is the type of serious change the country needs.” Dolphin Living chief executive Olivia Harris said: “The lack of genuinely affordable homes for the UK’s workers is an increasingly pressing issue that has been ignored by successive governments. According to statistics from the Resolution Foundation, housing costs now represent a significant and growing portion of household expenditure, with the average private renter dedicating approximately a third (33.8%) of their income to housing costs. “Those on median incomes and below – primarily our key workers – have been disproportionately affected by the escalating costs. These workers are critical to the success of the country but are left struggling to afford to live within a reasonable commute of their workplace. Without intervention from the next government, cities like London could face an exodus of key workers. There is also the potential for increasing numbers of households to find themselves experiencing homeless and so increase the temporary accommodation burden on local authorities as well as experience the negative social impacts of homelessness. “This is at odds with Labour’s promise to revive the UK economy. However, by implementing a long-term housing strategy which prioritises to maximise the delivery of homes below market rent in the areas with the greatest housing unaffordability and highest demand, it can ensure that the UK remains a globally competitive destination for tourism and business. This will support economic growth, while also supporting individuals, families and communities with stable, affordable places to live.” Housebuilders Craig Carson, managing director of Barratt West London, said: “For the first time in nearly a decade, there will be a Labour government working together with the mayor of London and with a commitment to build 1.5m homes across the next parliament, overhaul the planning system and, perhaps crucially for Londoners, to take a brownfield-first approach when it comes to development. The prioritisation of brownfield and the new greybelt land will help unlock large swathes of land for development, including former car parks and commercial units. “This will be particularly beneficial in the outer boroughs of London such as Barnet, Harrow, Ealing, Newham and Brent, alongside more central locations such as Southwark, ensuring developers can accelerate build programmes and deliver much-needed high-quality, sustainable homes for Londoners. It is vital that the new government works with the mayor to create a pro-development environment and offer support to first time buyers and young families to be able to get a foot on the ladder in the capital.” Student housing Dan Green, partner at Tri7, said: “Labour’s manifesto was surprisingly quiet on how it would deal with the problems facing the student space, including higher institution debt levels and international students. However, it acknowledged this vaguely and promised to look into a ‘secure future’ for the sector and a promise to increase research and development spend to 3% of GDP by 2030. The higher education sector will be looking urgently for clarity – and delivery – to ensure we can continue to maintain and grow the UK’s reputation as the best place in the world to study. “What we want to see is measures to ensure universities’ financial stability, given 40% of higher education institutions could be loss-making this year; a recognition of the importance of international students for the sector’s stability and, indeed, the UK’s social and economic fabric; and support to encourage the private and public sectors to work alongside each other more closely to deliver PBSA and affordable housing side-by-side, as we’re doing with Fusion Group in Wood Green in London, to unlock sites and deliver much-needed new homes for students and local families.” Image © Tayfun Salci/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock