London Mayor Sadiq Khan has written to Michael Gove asking for government policy to match his commitment to housebuilding across the capital

A construction work sits down at work, with an inset image of the Mayor of London in hi-viz jacket and hardhat — Main imageYousef Salhamoud on Unsplash. Inset: GLA

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has written to secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities Michael Gove warning that a lack of national leadership risks a serious downturn in the construction of new homes in London and called on the government to match his commitment to the building of new housing.

The letter follows the publication of an industry-endorsed ‘joint position statement’ which sets out the most critical challenges facing housing developers in the capital and some of the major interventions that both the government and City Hall can take to rectify them. These include a major boost to council homebuilding, which is needed to protect jobs and the wider construction sector supply chain.

The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Building the homes Londoners so desperately need has always been a top priority of me as mayor. Since 2016, we have managed to get London building again, with record numbers of affordable homes being built. But we risk going backwards again due to the lack of national action.

“I share the frustration of many in the housebuilding sector who are infuriated by the lack of national leadership from ministers.”

City Hall analysis claims that a combination of additional grant funding and a new, cheaper fixed lending rate for council housing could deliver around 5,000 additional council homes in the capital

The mayor and London Councils together re-convened the ‘London Housing Delivery Taskforce’ in August and September, bringing together the London housing industry to discuss solutions for the capital after experts warned of a major decline in housebuilding across the country.

The statement, endorsed by 26 key partners, including housing associations, local authorities, developers and industry body representatives, includes 29 recommendations for the Government to ensure the long-term viability of the capital’s housebuilding sector.

City Hall is pledging to take action to support social landlords by asking the government to make access to centralised funding more straightforward and launch a new council homes acquisitions programme. However, the Taskforce warns that ministers must also act: an immediate injection of grant funding combined with a new lower lending rate for councils could unlock the capacity for an additional 5,000 council homes in the capital.

London Councils research from August 2023 shows that one in 50 Londoners are now homeless and living in temporary accommodation, and the capital’s boroughs are collectively spending on average around £60m per month on temporary accommodation costs. The statement argues that longer-term government investment in delivering social rented homes would make better use of public funds, as well as provide more secure housing for homeless households.

Mayor Khan said: “This new blueprint to maximise housebuilding in London, which has been established as a result of collaboration with the flagship London Housing Delivery Taskforce and London boroughs, sets out the action City Hall will take to build a better, fairer and more prosperous city for all Londoners, and the steps ministers must now take to safeguard the delivery of thousands of homes across the capital.”

Other measures ministers are urged to take forward include scrapping the proposed new ‘Infrastructure Levy’ and removing the uncertainty caused by a lack of clarity on fire safety rules around second staircases on taller buildings, which are holding up developments.

Earlier this year, mayor Khan celebrated meeting the hugely ambitious affordable homebuilding target of starting 116,000 homes, set under the government’s 2016-23 Affordable Homes Programme, by March 2023.

The mayor continues to call for a funding settlement that meets London’s affordable housing needs, independently assessed by housing experts Savills as requiring £4.9bn a year in affordable housing investment.

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