The government’s plan to change housing development targets means more of the ‘right type’ of homes can be built, Wokingham Borough Council’s leader has said.
Cllr Clive Jones is “very happy” with the decision but emphasised that he would need to “look at the details” of the plan before coming to any conclusions.
“We need to find out how much flexibility there is, how much authority we will have, and whether there will be any guidance from central government.”
The government’s decision to change tack came after nearly 60 Tory rebels promised to support a ban on mandatory targets in England, which would have delayed voting on the Levelling Up Bill and risked damaging Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s authority.
Councils are now to be offered more leeway over meeting the targets set by local government, which has left Cllr Jones “more optimistic than six months ago” about being able to deliver appropriate housing in the borough.
“We have been talking now for six or seven years about the need for more one-, two- and three-bed properties, and more bungalows so people can downsize.
“Developers don’t want to give us those properties because they can make more money from four-, five- and six-bedroom houses.”
Wokingham’s Conservative MP, Sir John Redwood, said he was “glad to hear” that the government has agreed local communities should have a say in what development goes in the Local Plan, as he questioned what the point is of having a plan if farmland and green space cannot be protected.
The Department for Levelling Up said the change would make the centrally determined target a “starting point”, with councils able to propose building fewer homes if they faced “genuine constraints” or would have to build in a way that would “significantly change the character” of their area.
The assistant director of planning at Bracknell Forest Council, Max Baker, said it would be “premature” to discuss what the implications would be for the borough before the details are “formally announced.”
However, Bracknell’s Conservative MP, James Sunderland, said it was “a positive step forward” to give local communities the power to stop overdevelopment.
“I have been clear … that we must not concrete over what is left of our open spaces. Having fought hard against top-down housing targets, I am delighted that their abolition will now allow local people to better protect their own communities.
“Yes we need more housing, but we must also protect the green spaces that we have and ensure that house-building only occurs in the right places.”
However, some Conservatives have been critical of the proposal, with 2019 Tory manifesto co-author Robert Colville saying it would “enshrine ‘nimbyism’ as the governing principle of British society”.
The shadow Levelling Up Secretary, Lisa Nandy, called the plans “irresponsible” at a time when there is a “hosuing crisis” and a Labour’s Bulmershe and Whitegates councillor, Andy Croy, said he is “sceptical” of the decision.
“The Conservatives have said the new housing number will be a starting point for a discussion with local authorities. What they have not set out are the rules of the debate and who decides the winner. More importantly, they have not set out their plan to empower local authorities to build council houses.
“The fact is, Britain only builds enough houses when local councils are given the power to build homes that people can afford to live in. Instead we are still throwing tens of billions of pounds at private landlords via Housing Benefits.“
Cllr Jones said: “What we need are rules that can reflect a local situation. Local people know what is best for them.”
The Bill is expected to return to the Commons this week for day two of its report stage.
