National Housing Federation welcomes Government commitment to social housing » Housing » 24dash.com

The National Housing Federation has today welcomed the Government’s announcement of further legislation aimed at improving social housing - and measures to increase access to affordable housing.

The announcement made in the draft legislative programme, set out by the Prime Minister earlier this afternoon, emphasised the Government’s continuing commitment to dealing with the nation’s on-going housing crisis.

Last summer, the Government disclosed that it wanted to ensure that three million new homes were built by 2020 – and it has since made clear that housing associations would be a key partner in delivering many of these.

The Federation, which represents England’s housing associations, is a strong supporter of the Prime Minister's determination to make housing a major priority.

Federation chief executive David Orr said: “We welcome today’s announcement on housing as further proof that the Government is genuinely committed to tackling the nation’s desperate housing crisis.

“Ministers realise that housing is one of the big issues, and are clearly determined to make affordable housing available to many more people.

“The new deal on housing is critical as thousands of people are living in cramped conditions – and waiting lists for social homes are growing all the time, with the number of people waiting for a home being close to the combined populations of Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool.”

He added: “Housing associations stand ready to build the social homes the nation needs. And we look forward to working closely with ministers to ensure that, despite the pressures created by the current housing market uncertainty and credit crunch, associations can still deliver new homes in the numbers required.”