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No increase in housing supply estimates following Budget
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has made no increase to its estimate for housing supply following the Budget.
In its response to the government’s Autumn Budget, the independent advisory body said it was difficult “to distinguish the effect of changes in the planning system from the more general recovery in housing market activity”.
It added: “Given this, we have not made any further adjustments to our forecasts at this stage. We will keep these judgements under review as the policies are delivered and new evidence becomes available.”
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The response will come as an instant blow to Philip Hammond’s announcements on investment in the housing market. The chancellor today announced a raft of new measures worth £15.3bn, aimed at delivering 300,000 new homes a year by the mid-2020s.
In his speech, the chancellor said: “There is no single solution to this problem. The government needs to push on all fronts. The Budget announces a comprehensive package of new policy which will raise housing supply by the end of this parliament to its highest level since 1970, on track to reach 300,000 per year.”
In his response, Jeremy Corbyn called for “a large-scale, publicly funded housebuilding programme”.
KEY BUDGET MEASURES AT-A-GLANCE
- Investment of £44bn in housebuilding in capital funding, loans and guarantees over the next five years to boost supply of skills, resources and land
- Commitment to be building 300,000 homes a year by mid-2020s
- £1.5bn package of changes to Universal Credit announced. This includes the scrapping of the seven-day waiting period at the beginning of a claim, making a full month’s advance available within five days of a claim for those that need it and allowing claimants on housing benefit to continue claiming for two weeks
- Lift council borrowing caps in "high-demand areas"
- A £125m increase over two years in Targeted Affordability Funding for Local Housing Allowance claimants in the private sector struggling to pay their rent
- New money into Home Builders Fund
- Extra £2.7bn for Housing Infrastructure Fund
- Invest £400m in estate regeneration
- £1.1bn on unlocking strategic sites
- Stamp duty for first time buyers on properties worth up to £300k will be axed, while the first £300k on properties worth up to £500k will also be scrapped
- Three new Housing First pilots announced for West Midlands, Manchester and Liverpool
- Councils to be given the power to charge 100% council tax premium on empty properties
- Government will launch a consultation to barriers to longer tenancies in the private rented sector
- £38m for Kensington & Chelsea Council for mental health and counselling services, regeneration projects in areas surrounding Grenfell Tower and a new community space
- Invest in five new garden towns
- £125m increase in Targeted Affordability Funding for Local Housing Allowance claimants in the private sector struggling to pay rent
