Two reports slate South-east assembly’s housebuilding plans

Plans for the development of South-east England have taken a double hit this week.

Influential think tank the Institute for Public Policy Research and the South-east England Development Agency have both published reports criticising the South-east England Regional Assembly’s housebuilding strategy.

The left-leaning IPPR – which is seen as Tony Blair’s favourite think-tank – criticised SEERA for “underestimating the cost of affordable housing” and focusing too much on the provision of new-build housing for private sale.

Under the draft South-east plan, published in January, about 35% of housing would be affordable and up to 32,000 homes would be built each year. The draft sets out growth plans for the South-east until 2026.

Anthony Vigor, research fellow at the IPPR and co-author of the report Meeting Housing Need in the South-east, said the focus should be on building more socially rented and affordable homes because house prices in the region are among the highest in the UK.

He said: “We are unsure that building more private housing will allow a better control of house price inflation in the region.”

At present, 28,000 homes are built every year in the South-east. If that rises to 32,000, Vigor believes the 4000 extra homes must all be affordable or the region will not hit its 35% target. The government would need to invest an extra £325m each year to fund these homes.

The report by the South-east England Development Agency said the regional assembly’s 32,000 figure was 4000 short of what is needed. It “risked worsening the high cost of housing in the region,” the study said.

Echoing the IPPR, SEEDA called for a higher proportion of affordable homes to be built.

However, SEEDA chairman James Brathwaite said: “It will take a few years to increase housing output and we support a figure of 32,000 for the first five years of the plan.”

Paul Bevan, chief executive of the regional assembly, said: “SEEDA’s response will be considered carefully alongside all the others we receive before the assembly agrees the draft plan for submission to government.”