The Government has pledged to build 1.5 million homes by the end of this Parliament.

Alison Ogley, planning law partner at Freeths, said:

“Angela Rayner’s understanding of the scale of the task in meeting housing need represents a marked change from the previous Government’s position, which was characterised by a revolving door of Housing Ministers and Secretaries of State.

The path ahead in achieving the ‘stretch target’ of 1.5 million homes in five years is fraught with obstacles; it may be achievable, but the Government will likely have to go much further than current proposals to provide the local planning system with the resources and tools it needs to deliver.

Blockers to infrastructure delivery are complex; challenges with aggregates supply, increasing pressures on the construction industry, and ensuring local planning authorities deliver timely improvements (funded by the development sector) are just a few of these.

It remains to be seen whether the Government is able to grapple effectively with these issues and find a positive path through, which will be critical to meeting the 1.5 million houses in five years.”