Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Missing targets
I have clearly hit a raw nerve by my revelation that the Welsh Assembly Government's target of building 6,500 new affordable homes by 2011 has hit the buffers already and is looking increasingly unattainable.
Government figures obtained through written questions have shown that only 348 new homes were built by housing associations and local councils in 2007-08, the first year of the One Wales Government. At the same time 67 existing affordable homes were demolished and 871 were sold off under the Right to Buy and Right to Acquire. The net effect is that there are now 590 less affordable homes to rent available in Wales than there were when the One Wales Government came to power.
The Government's figures do not allow for affordable homes built under planning gain by private developers as that information is not yet recorded. However research I have carried out has found that in the five years up to April 2007 local Councils only secured 1,816 new homes through this method, an average of 363 a year, with many not making any progress at all.
This suggests that at best about 700 new affordable homes were added to the housing stock in 2007-08, cancelled out by the removal of 938 due to sales and demolition. To reach their target the One Wales Government need to add on average 1,625 new affordable homes to the total stock each year.
In response a nameless Assembly Government spokesperson alleges that I have obviously misunderstood their figures:
"The reality is that the provision of affordable housing covers both homes for rent and low-cost home ownership schemes, not just those for rent.
“The table Peter Black quotes only relates to information provided by local authorities building inspectors and the National House Building Council.
“It excludes homes acquired (not just newly built), rehabilitated, and hostels.
“It also excludes homes provided by housing associations where no direct grant is made available but the funds are provided by loans raised against grant-funded stock.
“The truth is that the coalition government is not shying away from its target of delivering an additional 6,500 homes over the period of government despite the current problems facing the housing market."
Of course my figures do not just include houses for rent. I have also made an estimate of the number of affordable homes for sale provided as a result of planning gain, based on historic patterns. The Assembly Government do not have figures for this. Even when these figures are added Wales still lost a net 238 affordable homes last year when we needed to gain 1,625.
I have now tabled additional questions to seek figures for the other categories included in the Welsh Assembly Government's response but I am not holding my breath. I am expecting the Minister to tell me that she does not hold those statistics even though her own official promised the Communities and Culture Committee that they would be available by the end of July. Even if they are available I would be astonished if they add up to the 1,863 new homes now needed to indicate that the Welsh Government are on target to meet their pledge.
The fact is that the official spokesperson's assurance that the coalition government is not shying away from its target of delivering an additional 6,500 homes over the period of government is not worth a bucket of warm spit if they cannot demonstrate how they are achieving it by producing verifiable statistics.
The Minister may think that I am seeking to deliberately misinterpret the situation or that I am failing to understand the whole picture but I am just doing my job in holding the government to account. It is up to them to clear up any misunderstanding by providing the figures to show that they are keeping their promises.
Government figures obtained through written questions have shown that only 348 new homes were built by housing associations and local councils in 2007-08, the first year of the One Wales Government. At the same time 67 existing affordable homes were demolished and 871 were sold off under the Right to Buy and Right to Acquire. The net effect is that there are now 590 less affordable homes to rent available in Wales than there were when the One Wales Government came to power.
The Government's figures do not allow for affordable homes built under planning gain by private developers as that information is not yet recorded. However research I have carried out has found that in the five years up to April 2007 local Councils only secured 1,816 new homes through this method, an average of 363 a year, with many not making any progress at all.
This suggests that at best about 700 new affordable homes were added to the housing stock in 2007-08, cancelled out by the removal of 938 due to sales and demolition. To reach their target the One Wales Government need to add on average 1,625 new affordable homes to the total stock each year.
In response a nameless Assembly Government spokesperson alleges that I have obviously misunderstood their figures:
"The reality is that the provision of affordable housing covers both homes for rent and low-cost home ownership schemes, not just those for rent.
“The table Peter Black quotes only relates to information provided by local authorities building inspectors and the National House Building Council.
“It excludes homes acquired (not just newly built), rehabilitated, and hostels.
“It also excludes homes provided by housing associations where no direct grant is made available but the funds are provided by loans raised against grant-funded stock.
“The truth is that the coalition government is not shying away from its target of delivering an additional 6,500 homes over the period of government despite the current problems facing the housing market."
Of course my figures do not just include houses for rent. I have also made an estimate of the number of affordable homes for sale provided as a result of planning gain, based on historic patterns. The Assembly Government do not have figures for this. Even when these figures are added Wales still lost a net 238 affordable homes last year when we needed to gain 1,625.
I have now tabled additional questions to seek figures for the other categories included in the Welsh Assembly Government's response but I am not holding my breath. I am expecting the Minister to tell me that she does not hold those statistics even though her own official promised the Communities and Culture Committee that they would be available by the end of July. Even if they are available I would be astonished if they add up to the 1,863 new homes now needed to indicate that the Welsh Government are on target to meet their pledge.
The fact is that the official spokesperson's assurance that the coalition government is not shying away from its target of delivering an additional 6,500 homes over the period of government is not worth a bucket of warm spit if they cannot demonstrate how they are achieving it by producing verifiable statistics.
The Minister may think that I am seeking to deliberately misinterpret the situation or that I am failing to understand the whole picture but I am just doing my job in holding the government to account. It is up to them to clear up any misunderstanding by providing the figures to show that they are keeping their promises.
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Me thinks that with the recession that upon us. With the decline in the housing market, we are in for a general decrease in House Prices.
Although this decrease in house prices doesn't necessarily make them "affordable" since we will have the situation of unemployment in our towns, cities and valley's.
The likes of our big building firms are in the process of off-loading their land banks to generate some income for shareholders - should WAG buy some of this up or give grants to the likes of The Wallich, WHA etc for them to build on these sites?
Kensian economic theory suggest that investing in such infrastructure during times of recession actually helps the economy.
G Lewis
Bridgend Lib Dems
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Although this decrease in house prices doesn't necessarily make them "affordable" since we will have the situation of unemployment in our towns, cities and valley's.
The likes of our big building firms are in the process of off-loading their land banks to generate some income for shareholders - should WAG buy some of this up or give grants to the likes of The Wallich, WHA etc for them to build on these sites?
Kensian economic theory suggest that investing in such infrastructure during times of recession actually helps the economy.
G Lewis
Bridgend Lib Dems
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