How can Labour shape the future of UK housing? A panel discussion at the Labour Party conference

Homes for All partners showcased the Homes for All vision to a packed room of housing
and policy experts on day two of the Labour Party Conference 2024.

The Nationwide Foundation and the New Statesman hosted a panel discussion on
Homes for All featuring the new Minister for Housing and Planning, Matthew Pennycook
MP. The Minister was joined by panelists Meg Hillier MP, Satvir Kaur MP and Kate
Markey (CEO of Nationwide Foundation) and David Orr (Chair of Homes for All and
Clarion Housing).

The event focused on ways in which Labour can shape the future of housing in England
as the government begins announcing their plans for England’s homes, including the
national housing strategy and a commitment to building 1.5 million new homes.

The Housing Minister noted that England is “in the grip of an acute and… entrenched
housing crisis [that is] a systems issue”and vowed to change every aspect of it, rather
than focusing on the piecemeal policy change we have endured for decades. He also
stated that the government will soon set out a long-term housing strategy with a clear
end point vision, “which is very simply a decent, safe, affordable home for everyone in
the country.”

As Kate Markey said: “No modern government has truly articulated a vision and a
strategy of what housing is for… The Government needs to determine what a well-
functioning housing system looks like and then develop the policies to take us there.

“If it doesn’t, siloed policies with unintended consequences will persist and people will
continue not to be able to access the decent and affordable homes they need.”

David Orr commented “Housing doesn’t exist in isolation and so much policy-making, so
many decisions, have been made as though you do something in housing and it has no
impact anywhere else…

“If we understand that this is a systemic failure, and it is indeed a systemic failure right
now, we have to think about what is the systemic long-term response to it.”

The panel agreed that fixing the housing crisis will also have an impact on other social
issues, such as educational under-attainment, economic immobility and childhood
poverty. The panel also discussed issues with the prevailing – and damaging – narrative that housing is merely a commodity or investment. Satvir Kaur MP stated that “a decent, safe, affordable home is intrinsically linked to better life outcomes”.

Homes for All believes that a decent, affordable home is the foundation of a flourishing
life and welcomes the Minister’s closing encouragement to those present to keep
pushing the government to go further and faster with its housing policy. We remain
committed to supporting and challenging the Government to ensure we have safe,
affordable, quality homes for all across England – as a central part of its growth agenda
for communities and the economy.

You can read the New Statesman’s full summary of the event on their website here.