Shapps: housing is central to economic recovery
The housing minister has told councils and housing associations that building new homes will be central to improving the country’s economy.
In a speech this morning Grant Shapps recapped on measures already unveiled and promised more initiatives to help house building.
He repeated his claim that the Communities and Local Government department has already identified enough government land for 80,000 homes, and flagged up the Get Britain building fund - which will offer government loans and equity stakes to get stalled house building projects moving.
Mr Shapps said the reform of the housing revenue account subsidy system will help the sector, calling the old mechanism a ‘tenant tax’.
He also said the mortgage indemnity scheme – now called the new buy guarantee scheme – would help people buy newly built properties. This will allow access to 95 per cent mortgages and will be open to UK citizens buying new build houses and flats up to £500,000 as their main home – whether they are first time buyers or moving up the ladder.
Mr Shapps said: ‘The pattern of the past has been to produce endless policies and initiatives that simply gather dust on Whitehall shelves and lead to inaction and inertia. But with the prime minister putting housing centre stage on the road to economic recovery, I am determined that we shall not repeat these mistakes of the past.’
