Rachel Reeves, has announced Labour's plan for homebuilding in her first speech as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
She has announced a number of measures to meet the government's manifesto pledge to build 1.5 million homes over the government's tenure.
The pledges include bringing back mandatory homebuilding targets to local councils, tackling obstacles to gaining planning permission for housing as well as building more on 'grey belt' land.
Return to mandatory homebuilding targets
Rachel Reeves has promised to re-introduce mandatory housing targets to local councils in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) through a more "interventionist approach".
Labour’s manifesto said decisions would still be left to local councils over what and where new homes would be built but that the government would “not be afraid to make full use of intervention powers" if targets are not met and decisions on large projects would taken "nationally not locally".
Local Councils have also been told they must have "up-to-date local plans" for how these targets will be met and that Labour will "make sure we’ve got the housing mix our country needs”.
Removal of planning red tape
Rachel Reeves has also promised "urgent action" to tackle planning regulations that have "tied up project for years and years before shovels even get into the ground".
Reeves said Labour "we will grasp the nettle of planning reforms" and "fast-track approval of urban brownfield sites”.
Reeves also promised to 300 additional planning officers to process applications faster and support local councils.
Building more on the 'grey belt'
Although building on brownfield sites is prioritised, Rachel Reeves has said building on the 'grey belt' is also needed to meet homebuilding targets.
The grey belt is a term introduced by Keir Starmer's Labour Party to refer to neglected or ruined areas of green belt land.
These areas would typically be classified as brownfield sites but are instead categorised as green belt due to their location within a larger green belt zone being just outside major cities.
Green belt boundaries are also said to be reassessed as to whether they qualify as grey belt land and that Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner will write to local councils and planning authorities to review these boundaries.
