Natalie Elphicke: Planning is not the problem that stops houses being built

Natalie is co-founder and chairman of Million Homes, Million Lives, and is a non-executive director of a leading building society. Follow Natalie on Twitter.

Another day, another demand for a free for all in planning approval for new homes.  A free-for-all in planning is not the answer to increasing the numbers of homes being built. Since John Prescott was Deputy Prime Minister and in charge of such things there has been a relentless call on planning authorities to approve, approve, approve, and the rules have been steadily relaxed.  But approve, approve, approve did not result in build, build, build. Over 280,000 fewer homes were built under the Labour government between 1998 and 2010 than in the previous 13 years of the Conservative government.  More homes overall, and more affordable homes, have been built in each of 2011 and 2012 than in 2010.  More council housing has been built in the last 2 years than over the entire 13 years of the Labour government. 

Low housebuilding has been a longstanding issue in this country, so to blame NIMBYs is a bit lazy. Of course large housebuilders want clean green fields to build 2,000-10,000 homes if they can. But that may not what our country needs or wants in all places or at any cost. Planning officers, councillors and those communities who want sensible planned housing and infrastructure which preserves quality of life and opportunity for all in their community are not the ones holding back housing numbers.

Natalie Elphicke: Taxpayer’s HomeBuild – time to unlock the housebuilder in all of us

Natalie Elphicke is a non-executive director of a leading building society and a published policy writer on housing and housing finance with Policy Exchange and the Centre for Policy Studies. She was the first national director of the new Conservative Policy Forum.

 It must be a frustrating time for the Treasury. The most extensive support of housing, home ownership and housebuilding in a generation - and yet the number of new homes being built remains obstinately low and home ownership rates have declined. First-Buy, new Right-to-Buy, Community Right-to-Build and Self-Build, a £10billion housebuilding guarantee scheme, new Help-to-Buy and NewBuy, the Build to Rent Fund, the affordable rent guarantee and the affordable homes programme, Funding for Lending, the law changed to allow a new presumption for development, the planned release of thousands of hectares of public land for housebuilding, some on a ‘build now, pay later’ basis...and the New Homes Bonus for Councils.  Some clever people have dreamt up some complex and whizzy schemes, and made fit-for-purpose some old favourites. Yet Britain still isn’t building. Perhaps it is time for something simple, something tax-free, just to tip the balance. Perhaps it is time to unlock the housebuilder in all of us.

The Taxpayer’s Homebuild

Why not allow every taxpayer to build one house for sale, tax-free - provided that they do it between now and 2016, and provided that the house is sold for no more than £250,000? The Taxpayer’s Homebuild could be aimed at private homes for first time entrants, for a local homeless community, for older people, for your son or your granddaughter, or anyone.  The choice of who you want to build for, what you want to build and who you want to sell to is yours.

We are a nation of homeowners and home improvers. Home ownership matters. Many homeowners have built second homes abroad, in Spain or France or Florida. Let’s harness that culture and that experience and confidence in property with its equity and available cash. The opportunity to earn on average £50,000 or £75,000 tax free.  That’s got to be a good incentive to get on with building.

Harriet Baldwin MP & Natalie Elphicke: A Building Society ISA to boost Britain’s homebuilding

Harriett Baldwin is the MP for West Worcestershire. Prior to entering parliament, she worked for JP Morgan for over 20 years.

Natalie Elphicke is a non-executive director of a leading building society and a published policy writer on housing and housing finance with Policy Exchange and the Centre for Policy Studies. She was the first national director of the new Conservative Policy Forum.

Savings can support housebuilding and boost growth. Ahead of this budget, the CBI and the building societies association have been looking at ways in which savings could be put to work to build more homes and help first time buyers through a housing deposit ISA and a housing ISA. A housing deposit ISA would help first time buyers who are saving for a deposit for their first home. A housing ISA would help savers and build more homes.

The housing ISA proposal to build more homes is simple. There would be a higher threshold than for a current cash ISA. Funding for Lending is targeted to expand mortgages. The government housebuilding guarantee programme assists larger developers and housing associations. The proceeds for the housing ISA would be targeted at self-build, small and medium sized developers, smaller housing associations, and community building projects, such as community land trusts.

Natalie Elphicke: The Conservative Policy Forum - re-launched today - will enable the grassroots to help to define a Conservative vision for our country

Natalie Elphicke is Director of the Conservative Policy Forum

Today, in Birmingham, nearly 200 Conservative party volunteers are being joined by Party Co-Chairman, Sayeeda Warsi, and Cabinet Office minister, Oliver Letwin MP, to re-launch the CPF (Conservative Policy Forum), the successor to the well-respected CPC.

In their remarks, both Sayeeda and Oliver will be re-affirming the national party’s commitment to grassroots participation to help to develop the Conservative policies for the period leading to the next Conservative Party manifesto.

This has also been re-iterated by the senior party volunteers, Jeremy Middleton, Chairman of the Conservative National Convention and Fiona Hodgson, a Vice-President of the Conservative National Convention and Vice-Chairman of the new CPF.

There is a vigorous structure with more than 600 CPF contacts in place and we are building on that impressive base.  We are working within the existing party structure, including association, area and regional representation along with a central CPF Council, chaired by Oliver Letwin, who has been involved for more than 30 years in the development of policy.

We have also been joined today by Robert Halfon, the MP Representative on the CPF Council: we have enjoyed huge support from our MPs, including Graham Brady, the Chairman of the 1922 Committee. 

A vibrant discussion programme is already up and running.  Our first two papers have been on the Alternative Vote and on Big Society and we have been delighted that the two relevant Conservative ministers covering these areas, Mark Harper MP and Nick Hurd MP, have agreed to participate with the responses we receive.

This is our opportunity to contribute, to influence policy discussion in our communities and all the way to Number 10 - to help to define a Conservative vision for our country.

You can contact the CPF via [email protected].