Rayner housing blitz will flood Britain with ‘soulless settlements', Tories say
Labour will create 'soulless settlements' and encourage urban sprawl with its plans to overhaul the planning system, the shadow housing minister has said.
Kevin Hollinrake said that Angela Rayner's plans will strip local residents of power over their own communities, and risks the proliferation of ugly 'cookie-cutter homes'.
The Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which returns to the Commons this week, aims to speed up planning decisions in part by stripping local authorities of some decision-making powers.
Labour plans to build 1.5 million new homes over the course of this Parliament, which they say will be possible in part with construction on poor-quality green belt, dubbed 'grey belt'.
The Government has also reintroduced mandatory housing targets, totalling 370,000 homes a year, for local authorities.
The Conservatives claim that the new legislation lacks sufficient protections for the character of England's smaller towns and villages, which could end up merging into the areas with the new settlements.
'Must build homes people want'
Writing in The Telegraph, Mr Hollinrake said that the Bill 'starts by blatantly encouraging urban sprawl, increasing housing targets for councils outside of towns and cities whilst easing targets for cities like London'.
He said: 'This will just create new, soulless settlements, take away our green belt, and make residents feel trapped and isolated hours away from their friends, work, and the amenities they need.'
The shadow housing secretary also pointed to the Government scrapping the Office for Place, which was founded to devise how to make attractive and well-designed housing.
'Without the Office for Place, there is nothing protecting communities from the bland, cookie-cutter houses that foster isolation.
'One and a half million new homes is an admirable ambition, but it means nothing if you don't build the communities and homes people actually want.'
'We are taking decisive action'
The Tories have tabled an amendment designed to enshrine in law the preservation of the historic character of historic villages and prevent them from merging with other settlements.
The legislation will also see more powers given to Natural England, a quango, which will be tasked with drawing up 'environmental delivery plans' for new proposed developments.
But Mr Hollinrake said that the organisation is 'grossly underprepared for such a nationally significant mission' and risks 'wasting taxpayers' money in the process'.
A Government spokesman said: 'We completely reject these claims, which simply do not acknowledge the scale of the housing crisis [we] inherited.
'Through our Planning and Infrastructure Bill, along with our wider reforms, we are taking decisive action to speed up every stage of the planning process and deliver the homes and infrastructure we need.
'The Bill creates a win-win for nature recovery and development, including a new Nature Restoration Fund, which unblocks building by funding large scale protection of precious habitats and species.'
Labour isn't creating greener, cleaner communities you're proud to be a part of – Conservatives are
by Kevin Hollinrake
Every person in Britain deserves a place they can call home. A community they can be proud to return to after a hard day's work.
One that is safe, connected and prosperous, embodying the green and pleasant land that our nation should stand for. Without this, we cease to be a united community and a United Kingdom.
We have forgotten this. Our communities have never been more divided. Never felt more hopeless and isolated. And people are crying out for change. We cannot afford to fail them.
Labour doesn't understand this. And, as the Planning and Infrastructure Bill returns to Parliament, it clear to see.
In its current state, the Bill will encourage isolation and break up communities. It won't connect or empower people. It won't help nature flourish or build beautiful houses that people are proud to call home.
It starts by blatantly encouraging urban sprawl, increasing housing targets for councils outside of towns and cities whilst easing targets for cities like London.
This will just create new, soulless settlements, take away our green belt, and make residents feel trapped and isolated hours away from their friends, work, and the amenities they need.
'Labour doesn't care for creating beautiful communities'
Instead, we should be gently densifying our existing towns and cities to resurrect lost communities.
This requires beautiful new homes and developments that bring nature and the life it brings back into the hearts of our towns and cities. Look at some of the most beautiful parts of our great cities, like Marylebone in London, with mid-rise, six-storey mansion blocks. No one would complain if this beautiful architecture were repeated elsewhere.
But Labour showed it doesn't care for creating beautiful, connected communities when they shut the Office for Place. With Nicholas Boys Smith at the helm, it made sure new developments focused on building beautiful, green and connected communities.
Without the Office for Place, there is nothing protecting communities from the bland, cookie-cutter houses that foster isolation. One and a half million new homes is an admirable ambition, but it means nothing if you don't build the communities and homes people actually want.
Building beautiful also means reviving nature within communities, and that starts by empowering local residents. They know what they need, not mandarins in Whitehall.
But once again, Labour doesn't understand how to revive lost communities. For generations, Labour has wanted weak communities dependent on the state, and this continues today. They are stripping local communities of autonomy by backtracking on their promise to slash quangos and putting taxpayers' money and the responsibility of local nature in the hands of Natural England.
Natural England is grossly underprepared for such a nationally significant mission. And we have seen too many times centrally controlled quangos struggle with the basics whilst wasting taxpayers' money in the process.
'Conservative MPs are taking action'
To its credit, at least Labour's Bill will bring some good news for smaller house builders. Cutting and simplifying planning and biodiversity red tape will make it much easier for them to compete with the volume house builders.
That is why Conservative MPs are taking action, amending this Bill to ensure Britain gets the empowered, connected and beautiful communities you deserve.
Whether it is David Simmonds – my fellow shadow minister for housing, communities and local government – enshrining the right to preserve the special character of historic villages and preventing them from merging with other towns. Or encouraging more sustainable drainage so we have cleaner rivers and communities.
Or Rebecca Smith, MP for South West Devon, and her amendment to end ridiculous red tape on creating ponds, empowering local communities to breathe life into local nature whilst protecting their areas from drought and flooding.
Or Aphra Brandreth – a former councillor and now MP for Chester South and Eddisbury – whose amendment will make it easier for local communities to plant more trees, creating a greener, more pleasant environment.
That is just to mention a few, because my colleagues have been working tirelessly to hold Labour to account.
We rightly lost the last election because we failed to listen to the British people and deliver on their priorities. There is a long road to regaining your trust – we know that.
But in opposition, we are taking the fight to Labour and delivering for Britain. We are listening. And with our amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, we will deliver a more connected, prosperous and greener country that you can once again feel proud to be part of.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
19 minutes ago
- Times
Fact check: how accurate are Rachel Reeves's spending figures?
'The chancellor's speech was full of numbers, few of them useful,' said Paul Johnson, the head of the Institute for Fiscal Studies. Reeves's speech was political to the core — and that extended to her use of statistics. The chancellor appears to have used whichever numbers best suited her position, predominantly to inflate the scale of the government's spending plans. She used bigger, cumulative figures to highlight the scale of investments, rather than annual numbers, and cash increases stripped of their context. She also used Tory spending plans from before the election, which never came to pass, as the baseline for the biggest numbers in her speech. When it did not suit her she ignored the Tory spending plans. While none of the figures are technically inaccurate, economists argue that they are a statistical sleight of hand and that Reeves would be better off being consistent in her use of numbers. Spending going up The claim: The first number in Reeves's speech — bar her obligatory reference to the £22 billion 'black hole' she claims to have been left by the Tories — was the boast that 'in this spending review, total departmental budgets will grow by 2.3 per cent per year in real terms'. The reality: This figure includes spending announced at the budget last year, where there were some of the biggest increases. Over the next three years, total spending — combining day-to-day and investment — will increase by 1.5 per cent. Day-to-day spending will rise by 1.2 per cent a year for the rest of the parliament, about half the rate it rose this year. • More for public services The claim: Reeves promised to add '£190 billion more to the day-to-day running of our public services' as well as an extra £113 billion to public investment. The reality: This is a comparison with previous Conservative plans — dismissed as 'essentially fictitious' by Johnson — drawn up before the election to set a trap for Labour and allow Rishi Sunak to promise tax cuts. The Tory plans envisioned day-to-day spending rising by only about 1 per cent a year, and big cuts in capital spending. Reeves reversed these by changing her fiscal rules to allow more borrowing and is increasing infrastructure spending. But on an annual basis, capital spending will be £151.9 billion in 2029-30, £20.6 billion more in cash terms than it is now. Day-to-day spending will rise by £50.7 billion by 2028-29. More for schools The claim: Reeves said she was providing a 'cash uplift' of more than £4.5 billion for schools by the end of the spending review period. The reality: Context is everything. The Treasury concedes in the small print that the core budget for schools will rise by 0.4 per cent over the next three years. It says that when the cost of expanding free school meals is stripped out of the figures 'you get a real-terms freeze in the budget'. • Rachel Reeves is testing voters' patience … she needs results Backing innovation The claim: Reeves declared that the government was 'backing [Britain's] innovators, researchers and entrepreneurs' with research and development funding rising to a 'record high of £22 billion per year by the end of the spending review'. In a press release the government said that spending on research and development was £86 billion. The reality: Despite the rhetoric, this spending pledge represents a significant scaling back of the government's investment ambitions in research and development. The previous government pledged to hit the £22 billion target by this year and then delayed it until 2027. This target has now been put back even further to 2029. Indeed, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology's budget will barely rise at all next year — far from the rhetoric of Reeves's statement. The £86 billion referred to in government press releases is a cumulative figure. More for social housing The claim: Reeves boasted of 'the biggest cash injection into social and affordable housing in 50 years', saying this would total £39 billion over ten years. The reality: The figure would represent almost a doubling of the £2.3 billion affordable homes programme. However, this spending ramps up slowly, reaching just £4 billion a year by the end of the parliament, leaving it to future chancellors to find ways of maintaining the spending. The overall capital budget for the housing ministry is actually flat over the spending review, with ministers relying on savings elsewhere — especially a reduction in the capital costs to councils of homes for asylum seekers. If these savings fail to materialise, painful decisions will be needed. NHS spending The claim: With health the big winner, Reeves boasted of 'an extra £29 billion per year for the day-to-day running of the health service' along with a 50 per cent boost in the NHS technology budget. The reality: The £29 billion figure is for NHS England specifically, and its budget will rise by 3 per cent a year in real terms, within a 2.8 per cent per year overall Department of Health rise. Capital budgets were increased last year but will be held flat for the rest of this parliament. Increasing technology spending further will therefore come at the cost of crumbling buildings or modern scanners and other kit. NHS leaders are already saying they will find it harder to shift to more modern, efficient treatments without extra equipment and buildings. Efficiency savings The claim: Reeves said the government had carried out a zero-based review of all government spending that would make public services 'more efficient and more productive' and, according to the Treasury, save £13 billion a year by 2029. The reality: These savings are, to put it charitably, extremely hypothetical and in some cases seem wildly optimistic. The NHS, the government thinks, will save nearly £9 billion from higher productivity — despite the fact that the health service has got less rather than more productive since Covid. And the culture department thinks it will save £9 million from 'digital reform' — despite the fact that the MoD, which is a much larger organisation, only thinks it can save £11 million. Overall the savings appear, at best, to be highly aspirational. But if they are not met, it will have a real-world impact on the amount of money the government has for public services.
Telegraph
20 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Planet Normal: ‘The numbers don't add up' in Rachel Reeves' spending review
Mr Lyons wasn't convinced by the numbers, ' Early in her speech the Chancellor said, is the plan credible, and the answer unfortunately is, no.' 'T he starting position is debt is very high, and I think we're in the early stages of Britain going into a debt crisis. If you're looking for good news, it might be that we're not the only country facing this problem; but today the Chancellor gave a speech that I think lacked a lot of the detail.' Allison is not convinced by the claims the economy is stabilising, ' We know it is not true, and we are already starting to see the impact on employment and on businesses. We know payrolls have fallen, that employment's fallen by over 250,000 since Rachel Reeves' budget. This is not an economy where you should be taking the gambles that she's taking. Where is the growth going to come from?'
Telegraph
20 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Reeves has folded like the Tin Foil Chancellor she is
Rachel Reeves confirmed on Wednesday that she is a ' spend today, tax tomorrow ' Chancellor. Her spending spree on the country's credit card has set us on a collision course with the autumn when more tax rises will hit working families' pockets hard. After a year of chaos, how can anyone take this Government seriously? Rather than using the spending review as an opportunity to deliver secure public finances, the Chancellor is instead lurching from one disaster to the next. The cruel cuts to winter fuel payments, the £30 billion Chagos Islands surrender and the billions in no-strings-attached union handouts are all chickens that have come home to roost. When the pressure is on, the self-styled 'Iron Chancellor' folds like the 'Tin Foil Chancellor' she really is. She promised to get borrowing down, but the deficit is up by 70 per cent on her watch. She pledged no new taxes rises, yet more are on their way. She pledged not to change pensioner benefits, then U-turned. Then U-turned again. The only consistent thing about her is her inconsistency. Her own MPs, Cabinet ministers and Labour's trade union paymasters smell weakness. They know she's vulnerable and they will demand more money – and get it if they shout loud enough. The Chancellor has boxed herself into a corner. We face an extra £200 billion of borrowing this Parliament compared with the last Conservative Budget, with £80 billion more in interest payments alone. We are almost a year in but no economic plan is forthcoming. Our country is exposed. We have no room left to respond to shocks in global markets. Interest rates and mortgages are staying higher for longer because of her choices, as the OBR has said. She trumpets the hundreds of billions in extra spending she has announced while on the other hand claiming to have fixed the public finances. It simply doesn't make sense. She claims there is 'still work to do to ensure the sums add up'. That's not stability, it's uncertainty – the very last thing markets want to hear. It is not just markets. Her abject failure means British families have seen inflation almost double, unemployment rise, growth stalling, debt interest soar and pensioners sacrificed. The country is worse off because of her choices. What of the winter fuel U-turn? Last summer, pensioners were left out in the cold to avoid 'a run on the pound', as Labour's Lucy Powell put it. Now they claim they can afford to reverse it because they have fixed the economy and the finances – but economists are saying both are in a worse state since Labour came to office. Nothing's changed except the Government's credibility, which is vanishing. Rock bottom confidence There was nothing in her review restore rock bottom business confidence. Payrolls fell by over 100,000 last month alone. Unemployment is up 10 per cent since Labour took office. Only businesses create growth and jobs. But our Chancellor has not yet learnt that basic lesson of economics, her fingers planted firmly in her ears whilst the alarm bells are ringing. Similarly, the first and most important duty of any Prime Minister is keeping the country safe. But even as the world is becoming more dangerous and a new axis of evils draws their battle lines, there was no further progress towards spending 3 per cent of GDP on defence, which Labour claim to be committed to. They stood firm on the Chagos surrender, which is paying for tax cuts for Mauritians while we suffer, costing our country £30 billion to lease back our own land. There is no urgency on the issues of the day. The Home Office budget too has been significantly hit by asylum costs, while illegal crossings soar. Rather than point the finger at everyone else, the Chancellor should take responsibility and fix the problems she has created. Instead, the socialist's lazy embrace of high spending, more borrowing and higher taxes beckons – leaving our public finances dangerously vulnerable. If we were in charge, we would take a different approach. We wouldn't kill growth with tax rises and red tape. We'd restore confidence, focus on efficiency and productivity, and reform welfare to get people off benefits and into work. At the end of the day, it's working people and businesses who will pay – with higher taxes, higher costs, and fewer opportunities. This Spending Review is unaffordable, and so is this Chancellor.
