Housing targets impossible, says council leader

The government has promised to deliver 1.5m new homes by 2029

A council leader has said the government’s new house building targets for local authorities are “impossible”.

Dudley Council has been told to increase the number of new homes it approves in the next five years from 657 to 1,594.

But its Conservative leader Patrick Harley said this would mean an increase of 143%, which he said it could not do even if a home was built “on every blade of grass” in the green belt.

The government said its plans would tackle the housing crisis and give working families “a better route to secure a home”.

Mr Harley called for the plans to be reversed.

“Going up by 143% - we can’t do that. You would have to build a home over every blade of grass on our greenbelt and we still wouldn’t satisfy these numbers unless we put 12-storey flats everywhere," he said.

“You cannot do this, it is impossible, we know what is best locally and will build the houses Dudley needs,” he added.

His concerns were echoed by the leader of Dudley’s Liberal Democrat group Ryan Priest, who said the figure was “obscene and undeliverable”.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said councils had a "moral obligation" to build more homes

Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner outlined the overhaul of England’s planning rules as part of Labour’s promise to deliver 1.5m new homes by 2029.

It saw a return of government-set housing targets for local authorities, which must be incorporated into their long-term plans to allocate land.

Ms Rayner said she would not hesitate to take over a council’s planning process if necessary, telling authorities they had a “moral obligation to see more homes built”.

“Our decisive reforms to the planning system correct the errors of the past and set us on our way to tackling the housing crisis,” she said.

“And something I am personally proud of, our new flexibilities for councils will boost the number of social and affordable homes, and give working families a better route to a secure home.”

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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