Time for some new foundations

摘要

National politicians, with the general election only 15 months away, are waking up to the need to be seen to be doing something about the affordable housing crisis. Like the proverbial London bus, nothing happens and then along come two inquiries - the Lyons Review for the Labour Party and the Elphicke Review for the coalition Government. But will these make a difference? The crisis is stark. There is a consensus that in England we need to provide approximately 100,000 new affordable homes each year, but we are building significantly less than half this figure. The lack of investment is also a long-term issue. Gross fixed capital formation in housing (ie, housebuilding and major renovations) as a proportion of GDP has lagged behind other Western European countries.