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Dispatches from Housing 2019 – Wednesday
With the Housing 2019 conference in Manchester in full swing for its second day, Inside Housing rounds up the key moments. Photography by Guzelian
Unsurprisingly, much of the expectation as delegates filtered into the cavernous Manchester Central this morning focused on Theresa May’s scheduled appearance.
But the soon-to-be-ex-prime minister’s attendance was by no means the only important point of order, with plenty of varied debate taking place across the many sessions.
Click here to read our Dispatches from Housing 2019 on Tuesday
Come what May
Theresa May speaking at Housing 2019 today
The conference’s main hall was packed out in advance of Ms May’s speech as the sector prepared for what is likely to be its last sight of her as prime minister.
Ms May revealed that the last time she had been at the venue was for the Conservative Party conference in 2017 when she infamously succumbed to a coughing fit.
Referring to the other disastrous event of that speech, she joked: “If anyone is planning on running on stage waving a P45, you are a little bit late.”
At this, the audience burst into laughter and a spontaneous round of applause.
But the speech was not as rapturously received as Ms May’s last appearance before the sector, at the National Housing Summit last year. Unlike on that occasion, there was no standing ovation for a speech that was largely aimed at shoring up the prime minister’s legacy.
Apart from a few fairly niche policy updates, the speech was mainly a defence of her record. This was her final sales pitch. It is up to the sector how much of it to buy.
Labour’s Lost Love
John Healey addresses delegates
Shadow housing secretary John Healey had the tricky task of following Theresa May. “It is good to have a prime minister do the warm-up act for you,” he quipped.
But Mr Healey is a veteran at this conference and popular with its crowd (he entered and left the stage to warm applause), and you sense that he knows it, so this was a characteristically assured display.
He chose to begin by attacking the prime minister’s record on housing – accusing her of having “so little to show for three years in Downing Street” – before setting out Labour’s own vision for housing, largely established in its Housing for the Many document published last year.
The challenge, he admitted in a Q&A following his address, is getting elected: “unless we can persuade people to give us the chance to get into government we’re wasting our time”.
On the road again
Alok Sharma is a familiar face to Inside Housing readers
The day kicked off with a speech from… hang on… Alok Sharma?
Many will remember Mr Sharma for his typically brief stint as housing minister in 2017, which mainly involved him meeting social housing tenants around the country in a series of roadshows to inform the Social Housing Green Paper. He did not actually attend the conference that year and explained in his speech today that he had been too preoccupied at the time with the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire.
Now employment minister, Mr Sharma did not wander into this year’s event by accident. While rather perspirant, he was quite clear: he wants to collaborate more with housing associations on helping disadvantaged people into work. In fact, he announced another roadshow – a series of round tables with social landlords to discuss how this ambition may be realised.
Joined-up working was very much the key theme. In a Q&A after his speech, the minister revealed his desire for the Department for Work and Pensions and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to collaborate more closely on their bids to the Spending Review – and he even suggested funding should be allocated based on how well organisations work with other agencies.
As he said twice: “A stable job can lead to a stable home, and a stable home can lead to a stable job.”
Credit where it’s due
Inside Housing’s Luke Barratt was tweeting from a session on Universal Credit:
Time for another day of #CIHHousing! Theresa May is at 3pm but I'm kicking things off with a session on Universal Credit, featuring @samlisterCIH @JASBar Paul Howarth of @Policy_Practice and Vinny Roche of @FirstforFCHO pic.twitter.com/8wwThT6SZu
— Luke Barratt (@lukewbarratt)Time for another day of #CIHHousing! Theresa May is at 3pm but I'm kicking things off with a session on Universal Credit, featuring @samlisterCIH @JASBar Paul Howarth of @Policy_Practice and Vinny Roche of @FirstforFCHO pic.twitter.com/8wwThT6SZu
— Luke Barratt (@lukewbarratt) June 26, 2019
Doom and gloom would seem a fairly easy prediction for a session on Universal Credit led by housing providers, but this was not the whole story today.
Jen Barfoot, chief executive of Homes in Sedgemoor, said that Universal Credit sent rent arrears up and then down to below 1%. Homes in Sedgemoor, she says, has evicted no tenants for rent arrears in the past 18 months.
Familiar complaints were still present, though, as Vinny Roche, chief executive of First Choice Homes Oldham, said the five-week wait for tenants to receive payments “has to go”.
Sure you can Hackitt?
Izzy Connell of MHCLG
Earlier this month, the government published its proposals for implementing the recommendations in Dame Judith Hackitt’s review of building regulations and fire safety. The ongoing consultation includes plans for a tough system including a new regulator, accountable dutyholders and an enforcement regime covering all residential buildings taller than 18m.
In a session today, Izzy Connell, deputy director of the building safety programme at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, ran through the proposals. She admitted that “the devil is in the detail of how we make them work on the ground”. Indeed, there were concerns in the room about the extra burden the new rules would place on landlords and how it will all be funded.
Representing Camden Council on the panel, Melissa Dillon warned that the proposals would not prevent another Grenfell on their own. “A lot is going to come down to how this is going to be resourced, and how long is the transition period, and what do you mean by a complex multi-user building,” she said.
Much of the discussion focused on what Camden Council and Clarion Housing Group, represented by Dan Hollas, are already doing to improve building safety compliance, and in many ways this was the key bit.
Ms Connell emphasised that “if you’re able to be doing this now in advance, thinking about your buildings for all the other reasons that you have to do that, then it’s the right thing to do, then it just makes you so much better placed as and when this legislation comes in”.
Yes to a no-deal
Brian Berry, chief executive of the Federation of Master Builders
Perhaps it was the imminent arrival of Theresa May, but senior sector figures changed their tune significantly on Brexit this afternoon. In response to a question from Inside Housing, three of the four members of a Brexit panel played up the potential positive effects of a no-deal Brexit.
Brian Berry from the Federation of Master Builders, Vicky Savage from L&Q and Jonathan Seddon from Seddon Group all claimed that if the UK leaves the EU without a deal, this could represent an opportunity to boost housebuilding. Luckily for them, Boris Johnson may well oblige by delivering this outcome in four months.
Council housing at 100
George Clarke, best known for presenting Channel 4’s Amazing Spaces
TV presenter and architect George Clarke delivered an emotional call to arms in a session to mark 100 years of the Addison Act – the groundbreaking piece of legislation that paved the way for the development at scale of new council homes.
Mr Clarke had tears running down his face at the end of the session, in which he described the difference that council housing had made to his family’s life in Sunderland, before calling for the government to take responsibility for the housing crisis and commit to the building of 100,000 new council homes a year for the next five years to mark the anniversary.
Mr Clarke also called for the suspension of the Right to Buy (currently diminishing the availability of council homes across England).
Inside Housing is about to launch a month-long series of articles to mark the 100th anniversary of the Addison Act – which received Royal Assent in July 1919.
We want to hear from local authorities about what they are doing on housing.
Read about how you can get involved here
We will be celebrating throughout July, and we encourage readers to get in touch with stories about what they are doing to mark the anniversary in their area – or about their plans to drive housebuilding. Drop us a line at gene.robertson@insidehousing.co.uk
Mr Clarke will be marking the occasion with a TV show to mark the anniversary of the Addison Act – so social housing professionals should make sure to watch Channel 4 at 8pm on 31 July.
More from Housing 2019
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Dispatches from Housing 2019 – Thursday Our round-up of the third and final day
Whatever Theresa May says, social housing is still the victim of a focus on homeownership Editor Martin Hilditch gives Inside Housing’s verdict to the prime minister’s speech
Your Housing 2019 tweets: a selection of tweets from the conference
Theresa May believes in a change of direction – but will Johnson or Hunt pay any attention? Jules Birch gives his take on Theresa May’s speech to Housing 2019
Watch Theresa May’s speech: a video of the prime minister’s speech to Housing 2019 in full
Dispatches from Housing 2019 – Wednesday The key takeaways from day two of the conference and exhibition
John Healey on Grenfell, Boris Johnson and Labour housing policy Ahead of his speech to Housing 2019, the shadow housing secretary takes part in a Q&A with Inside Housing
Dispatches from Housing 2019 – Tuesday Our round-up of all the key talking points in Manchester on the first day of the conference
Housing Heroes 2019 winners announced Find out the 17 winners and 14 commendations at the ceremony on Monday ahead of the conference and exhibition
In full: Terrie Alafat’s opening address to Housing 2019 The full text of the speech given by the chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing to open Housing 2019
What will the Hackitt Review changes mean for you? Conference speaker Debbie Larner writes for Inside Housing about building safety
Inside Housing and Aico competition: tell us about your resident safety campaign We launch a new competition to promote fire and carbon monoxide safety
The latest news headlines from the conference:
Next PM will be committed to social housing, says Brokenshire
Homes England strategic partners to get £1bn cash boost
John Healey blasts May's housing record
Don't wait for Hackitt legislation to push ahead with building safety, says MHCLG official
Theresa May: ‘social housing a victim of drive for homeownership’
‘No-deal Brexit an opportunity for housing’, claim sector figures
Banks’ appetite to lend threatens offsite take-up, warns major landlord
Minister: funding allocations should be based on joint-agency working
Sector warned that fire safety costs could eat up HRA cap windfall
Theresa May to give speech at Housing 2019 conference
Regulator ‘found no breaches’ following Dispatches programme on Sanctuary
No funding for removal of combustible balconies, says Malthouse
MHCLG housing supply chief: affordable housing grant increase ‘on the table’ for Spending Review
‘We have got to do the right thing’ on affordable housing, says land director of Homes England
Council boss warns against local authority ‘can’t do’ attitude towards housebuilding
Terrie Alafat says Spending Review must ‘make a real difference’
Sector needs £146bn from government over a decade to end housing crisis, says NHF
Savills housing sector survey: building homes more important than existing stock to housing leaders
Morning Briefing: thousands descend on Manchester for Housing 2019
We are bringing you the most up-to-date, comprehensive coverage of #CIHHousing anywhere, including:
— Inside Housing (@insidehousing)
All the biggest #ukhousing stories
Live tweeting from the key sessions
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Daily magazines of conference newsWe are bringing you the most up-to-date, comprehensive coverage of #CIHHousing anywhere, including:
— Inside Housing (@insidehousing) June 26, 2019
All the biggest #ukhousing stories
Live tweeting from the key sessions
A daily newsletter rounding up the key talking points
Daily magazines of conference news
