CEO of Leaders Romans Group - Response to the Spring Statement

Affordable Homes Programme

The first is the £2bn top-up for the Affordable Homes Programme which will provide up to 18,000 new social and affordable homes. Since council housing effectively ceased four decades ago, the private rented sector has fulfilled an important role in preventing homelessness. Today, with demand for rental properties outpacing supply, it’s good to see the government helping to address this need.

However, it seems a missed opportunity that the government rarely addresses social housing in its broadest sense – homes for sale as well as for rent. At very little cost to the taxpayer, the government could do much more to champion shared ownership as an affordable and practical way of addressing this country’s housing crisis and enable first time buyers to get a foot on the housing ladder. Our shared ownership division, SOWN, is busier than ever responding to unprecedented demand from would-be-homeowners and yet government announcements – everything from the Labour manifesto to the recently published Planning and Infrastructure Bill – consistently fail to mention shared ownership.

Funding for construction training

The £600m for construction training is also very welcome. But again, there is a cost-free solution to the skills shortage which has been overlooked. Again it concerns communication. The various trades and professions that make up the construction sector deserve greater respect and recognition. Tony Blair’s ‘education, education, education’ ethos which led to a significant increase in young people pursuing academic courses had its benefits. But for many it resulted in an unusable degree and a delay in starting in a profession. The answer is two-fold: more vocational degree courses to equip people with the necessary skills for the construction and property sectors; and a greater championing of the non-university route into these roles. This approach would deliver a saving to the Exchequer and a boost for the development sector. 

Stamp Duty

There is undoubtedly a long-overdue need for a comprehensive reassessment of Stamp Duty. Unfortunately this may have to wait until a future spending review, but in the meantime, I would hope that the government sets about considering changes to what can be a very damaging tax – one that can cost the Treasury, rather than benefitting it, bearing in mind the unintended consequence of discouraging people to move up the property ladder.

The Renters’ Rights Bill

There’s much that needs to be changed in the Renters’ Rights Bill before it is enacted - not least the courts process, the increase in allowable arrears and the abolition of rent in advance. It’s not a fiscal consideration but it will impact considerable on costs to the government. So in the context of toady’s spending review we call on the government to consider the financial damage that the Renters’ Rights Bill will cause unless substantially amended - a potential increase in homelessness and the resultant cost to the public purse – and look at making amendments to the Bill during its final stages.

 Michael Cook, Chief Executive Officer of Leaders Romans Group