Following the appointment of John Healey the Federation have wasted no time in urging the Minister for Housing to act on the country’s chronic housing shortage.

David Orr the Federation chief executive said, “We warmly welcome the appointment of John Healey and look forward to working closely with him.

“The country is facing an unprecedented housing crisis. The number of new homes being built this year is expected to slump to an 88-year low, while waiting lists for affordable homes have hit record levels.

“Clearly the new minister must get Britain building again.

“Mr. Healey must also look at ways of getting the nationalised banks to lend to the thousands of people who are currently being refused mortgages for shared ownership properties – despite having good credit records.

“The minister will need to work closely with housing associations to deliver the thousands of affordable homes this country desperately needs.”

The National Housing Federation has also outlined plans to encourage housing associations to build thousands of new affordable homes by the next election. This would be delivered through £3.2 billion of public investment.

“If ministers invest £3.2bn, housing associations will compliment this with their own investment, and deliver 50,000 new social homes by next June”, said David Orr.

Further Information
John Healey, National Housing Federation Website
House Building Programme, National Housing Federation Website