Industry Response to the Resignation of Angela Rayner
Lawrence Turner, Director of Boyer said:
“Angela Rayner’s planning reforms rightly acknowledged the scale of the Housing Crisis and the urgent need for bold, decisive action. Her resignation must not become an excuse for delay. The new Secretary of State now bears the responsibility to continue to unlock delivery and work to win the support of local authorities to provide the homes and infrastructure communities desperately need.
For plan-making, continuity here is critical. Local authorities must receive clear assurance from Government that the 30-month local plan timetable remains in place and better guidance on when and how to prepare their new Plans. Without this, plan-making risks stalling at the precise moment when momentum is most needed.
Secondly, the new SoS must act swiftly to remove two major barriers to housing delivery: nutrient neutrality and water scarcity. While the Nature Restoration Fund announcements were a welcome start, they must be accelerated to provide certainty for developers and local authorities and to have any real impact.
Thirdly, Planning departments need proper resourcing. Councils should be allowed to retain 100% of planning fees, enabling investment in staffing and the recruitment of new planners to speed up decision-making. In addition, greater urgency is needed behind the delivery of new towns and major growth areas. These strategic projects offer the scale of housing and infrastructure that piecemeal development cannot achieve, but they require more work to increase momentum through direct government support, infrastructure investment, and clear direction to unlock land quickly.
The new Secretary of State will be judged not by words, but by outcomes. If they can build consensus across local authorities and drive real progress on housing delivery, there remains a genuine opportunity to “turbo-charge” house building within this Parliament”
William Nichols, Regional Director of Lanpro said:
Angela Rayner’s resignation, after last night’s revelations, became inevitable. It is also regrettable: she had been at the forefront of some bold housing and planning policies.
The immediate question for the industry is who now carries the baton at MHCLG. Matthew Pennycook would be a logical choice – he has shown a strong grasp of the issues and would offer continuity. But continuity is not always what’s needed. This moment could be an opportunity to rethink aspects of policy that have been less successful, particularly the emphasis on local government reorganisation.
Local government reorganisation may be necessary, but it has distracted attention from housing delivery. In many councils, members and officers facing upheaval have been reluctant to press ahead with local plans when the future geography of their areas is so uncertain A pause here might free ministers to concentrate on what really matters: the growth agenda or local government reorganisation.
And growth cannot be achieved without better integration of housing and infrastructure. We saw the risks only weeks ago when funding was withdrawn for relocating Cambridge’s sewage works – a move that has already had consequences for the preparation of the Greater Cambridge Local Plan, which has been delayed.
Angela Rayner’s resignation also offers the opportunity to bring fresh thinking to the housing market, with a particular need for a government incentive scheme for new buyers, to boost demand and to introduce badly needed growth in the economy.
The second question is more political: should Keir Starmer retain the post of Deputy Prime Minister? The Starmer–Rayner partnership offered balance, but history suggests the role can be as divisive as it is useful.
There is a danger or extensive political uncertainty over the coming months, with the potentially torturous election process for a new Deputy Leader, which will bring pressure to bear on government policy from both the left and right, and could potentially damage economic confidence.
What is certain is that we are still at the beginning of the growth agenda. Much remains to be done, and the next appointment at MHCLG will be critical in deciding whether the early momentum is sustained or lost.
Greg Tsuman, Managing Director for Lettings, Martyn Gerrard Estate Agents, comments:
“Now we’ve lost both the Homelessness Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary amid housing-related scandals, and the message couldn’t be clearer: the Government must get its housing policy in order – or risk running out of ministers to resign before they manage to fix the housing market.
“Rather than pushing simplistic narratives that demonise landlords for the affordability crisis in the private rented sector, politicians need to get their own house in order and acknowledge their role in creating the pressures driving up rents and reducing supply. With the Renters’ Rights Bill up for discussion on Monday, I think it’s likely that all the amendments made by the House of Lords to inject common sense into the Bill are rejected, leaving legislation that fails to empower tenants and instead forces landlords into defensive pricing, ultimately harming affordability and choice for everyone.
“Let’s not be distracted by political reshuffles – the core issues remain unchanged. Legislative and tax pressures on landlords are rising, not easing, and these added costs inevitably make life harder for tenants. Every new expense in the system gets passed on as higher rents.
“It’s contradictory to blame landlords while simultaneously implementing policies that push rents up. The solution is clear: streamline regulations, lower the tax burden, and promote stability so landlords can offer homes without constantly passing on increasing costs. To make renting fairer and more affordable, we need less political posturing and more practical, effective reform.”
Colin Brown, Head of Planning & Development, Carter Jonas said:
I think the industry will want to know that the changes the Government has made to the planning system will remain the focus for the incoming Secretary of State, and that there will be no rowing back. There is no doubt that publication of the revised NPPF in December 2024 and the introduction of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill have been important moments, pointing to a clear change in direction to build the homes the country needs.
The resignation letter from the former Secretary of State and the response from the Prime Minister indicate this is still central to the Government’s thinking so reassurance can be derived from that. What we would still like to see is the use of more tools to support the demand side for new housing especially with affordability remaining challenging and we hope the new Secretary of State will focus on that, together with continuing better resourcing for local planning authorities.
Finally, there is a need to ensure that infrastructure provision to support new housing is tackled earlier and at a more regional and national level to ensure that projects are not unnecessarily delayed.
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