Affordable Housing in the South-West
Debate between David Warburton and Steve Double(2 years, 7 months ago)
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Steve Double (St Austell and Newquay) (Con)
I congratulate my hon. Friend on having secured this important and timely debate. Over many years there has been an incredible increase in demand for housing in the south-west, including, I am sure, in his constituency. Does he share my view that it is impossible to build enough houses to meet the demand, and that we have to take other measures to intervene in the market to manage the demand for houses as well as the supply?
David Warburton
My hon. Friend makes a tremendously apposite point. It is a very good point indeed. The answer is yes, we do: the demand is such that the supply is always going to be vastly outstripped by it, so we need to look at other measures. I hope that when the planning Bill comes forward, it will help us towards that route and show that there are other opportunities out there.
The region’s job market has been among the worst hit by the pandemic, sitting alongside the rocketing house prices that I have mentioned, with affordability only expected to worsen. That means overcrowding, homelessness and a generation of young people unable to move out of their parents’ home or live near their workplace.