Housing a pawn in Tory Brexit leadership scrap
April 16, 2019
Former Housing Minister Dominic Raab has called for “radical” housing reforms in an attempt to help renters get on the housing ladder and increase the rate of home building.
Attacking the Conservative failure to stand up to developers and ensure the construction of enough homes to tackle the housing shortage, Raab advocated a new Help to Buy scheme that would exempt landlords from capital gains tax when they sell their property to existing tenants.
The leadership hopeful also identified the following solutions:
- More government land to be released, with councils given more power to sell sites to smaller developers
- Design by tender after outline planning permissions are received
- Fewer impositions on councils who fail to get enough homes built
- Scrapping stamp duty on homes worth less than £500,000
- Digitise land registry records and support more modular housing
The National Federation of Builders (NFB) does not recall Dominic Raab voicing such policy proposals during his tenure as housing minister. This idea would have been worth hearing when he had a role shaping housing policy in the national interest, rather than when revealing his leadership ambitions on the back of embarrassingly drawn-out Brexit negotiations.
Richard Beresford, chief executive of the NFB, said: “I don’t remember Dominic Raab having any of these ideas when he was housing minister. The revolving door used to usher in a steady stream of housing ministers is unlikely to get any rest, so how likely is it that these ideas will be implemented?”
The House Builders Association (HBA), the house building division of the NFB, has criticised Help to Buy because it fuels demand far more than it provides a supply of homes.
Rico Wojtulewicz, head of housing and planning policy for the HBA, said: “While there is no silver bullet to the housing crisis, it will also not be solved with just the floating of a few ideas. We need consistency, detail and the inclusion of SME house builders at the beginning of policy discussions.”
You May Also Enjoy
South East sees most sellers relisting
New research from Property DriveBuy reveals that sellers who are re-entering the market are reducing their asking price by an average of £5,300 to try and snag a buyer, but in London this reduction climbs as high as £27,000, while the South East is the region where most sellers are relisting this year having failed…
Read More 
Average rents rise by 2% in 2025, predicted to rise by further 2% in 2026
The average advertised rent of homes outside of London fell in Q4 2025 by 1.1% (-£15), dropping to £1,370 per calendar month. It’s only the second time in five years that quarterly rents have fallen: Across the whole of 2025, average advertised rents rose by 2.2% compared to 2024 As the market settles into a…
Read More 
Landlord Demographics Remain Broadly Unchanged
Propertymark analyses the latest figures from the English Private Landlord Survey 2024, published alongside headline findings from the English Housing Survey 2024–25, showing that the profile of private landlords in England has remained remarkably consistent with previous surveys, even as landlords navigate ongoing tax changes and evolving standards and expectations. The data highlights that the…
Read More 
London’s most prestigious postcodes revealed
The latest research from Enness Global has revealed London’s 11 most prestigious postcodes based on average sold price data, with the SW1A postcode covering Mayfair and St James’s topping the table, where the average home sold for £2.375m. Enness Global analysed sold price data from the Land Registry, examining transactions to have completed across London’s…
Read More 
Software GDTJ45 Builder Problems: Causes, Solutions, and Best Practices
If you’ve been using GDTJ45 Builder software, you might have noticed it’s not always as smooth and reliable as expected. From installation errors to unexpected crashes and slow performance, many users experience problems that can disrupt workflow, delay projects, and cause frustration. This article will walk you through the most common GDTJ45 Builder problems, explain…
Read More 
Developers draw confidence from improving lending landscape
Jonathan Samuels, CEO of Octane Capital, believes that improving conditions across the lending landscape have helped to boost developer confidence heading into a new year, despite a number of challenges still remaining, with specialist finance remaining a key weapon in their arsenal. The latest survey of UK property developers, commissioned by specialist lender Octane Capital,…
Read More