On 27th February 2020 Lord Young of Cookham asked Her Majesty’s Government “what progress they have made in meeting their target of delivering 300,000 homes per year by the mid-2020s.” The Bishop of London, Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, asked a follow up question:
The Lord Bishop of London: My Lords, will the Minister say whether the Government are planning to look at different versions of what affordability might mean in relation to housing? I am sure noble Lords know that the West Midlands Combined Authority has been looking at income rather than market value. This has brought house prices within easier reach of more people in lower income brackets.
Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist: We have done much to increase affordability for individuals. The affordable rent was introduced to maximise taxpayers’ money, which has allowed us to build more homes for every pound of government investment, because local authorities have had greater income at their disposal to spend on new houses. Removing the cap has also enabled them to invest much more in housing.
