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
Property compliance experts urge landlords not to ignore major tenancy changes under Renters’ Rights Act
Beresfords property group highlights key actions landlords must take as new tenancy rules, enforcement powers and energy standards approach. UK landlords are being warned not to overlook major changes to tenancy agreements and compliance requirements, as the Government moves closer to implementing the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. Following the publication of draft secondary legislation, the…
Read More 
Nationwide becoming first lender to allow mortgage deeds to be signed digitally
Mary-Lou Press, President of NAEA Propertymark (National Association of Estate Agents), comments: “The conveyancing process remains one of the most common sources of frustration for buyers and sellers, with more than 30 per cent of housing transactions taking over 17 weeks to complete on average. These prolonged timescales only serve to increase pressure and uncertainty…
Read More 
Fruitful year ahead for aspiring first-time buyers
First-time buyers and those with little equity to refinance will find greater mortgage choice. During January, there was an uplift in higher LTV deals, with 90% LTV options at a record-high, plus a boost to 95% LTV deals, which are at their highest count since March 2008. The electronic monitoring of LTV choice at Moneyfacts…
Read More 
Lovelocked London homebuyers face romance premium
The latest research by London lettings and estate agent, Benham and Reeves, reveals that lovelocked London homebuyers house hunting across the capital’s most romantic locations can expect to pay house premiums of more than 64%. But couples can still find great value if they know where to look. Benham and Reeves has identified nine of…
Read More 
First-time buyers face highest hurdle in England
The latest research from Yopa has found that while first-time buyers in England continue to face the highest cost of getting a foot on the property ladder, at £27,807, it’s their Scottish counterparts who have seen this cost rise by the largest margin over the last year, increasing by 5.5%. Yopa analysed* the current cost…
Read More 
Rental price and average salary tracker – January 2026
Seasonal cooling deepens regional rent declines, while affordability pressures remain structurally high Month-on-month rental prices fell across the majority of regions, with particularly pronounced drops in the North East (−10.0%), South West (−8.1%), Yorkshire and Humberside (−7.4%), and Wales (−6.1%), highlighting a clear seasonal slowdown as demand softens post-Christmas. Year-on-year salary requirements show only modest…
Read More