Statement from Solace President Jo Miller in response to the Housing White Paper

Today Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Sajid Javid introduced the Housing White Paper to Parliament and set out the Government’s housing strategy for England. This is a statement from Jo Miller, Solace President and Chief Executive of Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, in response:

“Solace welcomes the publication of the White Paper which addresses some of the key issues that we identified in our Housing Policy Paper, particularly around the need to build enough homes, at the right time and for the right price. We are aware there is a pipeline of developments with planning permissions which are not being implemented and we therefore welcome measures which would support Local Authorities in working with developers to start building much needed homes.”

“Local Authorities have a key role in driving the creation and growth of places; the quality and affordability of housing underpins prosperity and is essential to creating resilient and sustainable communities. The Government’s recognition of the need to focus on a wider range of housing solutions, and particularly the measures aimed to help to deliver more homes for affordable rent, is a great step forward.”

“Local Authorities are best placed to meet the national housing challenge and it is vital that they are given the powers and appropriate long-term funding streams to deliver homes that meet the needs of their local areas. Local Authorities need to be given more powers and flexibilities to be able to invest in housing, for instance through the retention of 100 per cent of receipts from the sale of their assets, which would enable reinvestment and the building of more affordable homes.” 

“Solace will continue to work with the Government and partners to progress discussions across the sector and we will respond more fully to the White Paper proposals in due course.”