industry news
New social housing regulator to be set up
A
stand-alone agency specialising just in regulating social housing is likely to be established in early 2017 following a
Government review of the Homes and Communities Agency. Hot on the heels of launching a consultation
on introducing fees for regulating housing associations, the Government released a consultation on setting up a new regulator which will run until the end of January. A spokesperson said this would be an “administrative” change that will not affect the regulator’s powers or operations. Julian Ashby, chair of the HCA’s Regulation
Committee, said: “The committee welcomes the Government’s continued commitment to having a strong and independent regulator for the social housing sector. The decision to separate the regulator from the HCA will strengthen our ability to promote a viable, efficient and well-governed social housing sector able to deliver homes that meet a range of needs. “This change is to the organisational
structure and governance of the regulator only and will not impact on our regulatory approach or day-to-day operations.”
Conflict
The consultation document said this move was necessary to address the potential conflict of interest arising from the HCA’s funding arm. Ever since regulatory powers and responsibilities were transferred to the HCA back in 2012, the quango has faced accusations that it has failed to fully protect tenants’ interests and these have always taken a back seat behind the investment role. The Housing Minister Gavin Barwell
previously told Parliament: “Parts of the HCA increasingly resemble a bank that is making commercial lending decisions. We have a strong, clear and robust role for the regulator to look at the interests of tenants.” Housing associations backed the principle of
“The change will not impact to HCA's day-to- day operations”
moving regulation into a separate agency and the imminent introduction of regulatory fees essentially sealed the deal. It remains uncertain what the change
means for council tenants and whether the new regulator will have more influence over local authority housing departments than currently.
Backing
John Bryant, policy leader for regulation at the National Housing Federation, welcomed the proposal for a separate regulator. He said: “This will streamline processes and increase effectiveness across the organisation and help to foster the right environment for housing associations to deliver the houses our nation needs. We will maintain a close dialogue with the HCA throughout the implementation process.” Terrie Alafat, chief executive of the Chartered
Institute of Housing, said: “We support the creation of an independent regulator. The HCA has done an excellent job as regulator, but changed circumstances mean that it is right to consider different arrangements.” Separating the HCA’s functions is but
the latest development in a somewhat chequered recent history for social housing regulation that has seen the Housing Corporation, the Tenant Services Authority and the Audit Commission all get abolished in the last decade. The HCA regulation committee was set up
under the Localism Act 2011 after the abolition of the TSA, and was meant to be independent of the main HCA. It has struggled to demonstrate this with its regulatory resources frequently cut back while investment in new housing has been prioritised.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan will allow private housebuilders to limit the amount of affordable housing included in new developments to 35 per cent in a deal that may cast doubt on his election promise to set a 50 per cent affordability target on all new homes. The new threshold is intended to increase
housebuilders’ contribution to cheaper housing, but the Conservative opposition accused the Mayor of “ratting on what he said during the election.”
“It is estimated the money will fund at least 90,000 affordable homes over the next six-year period ”
Andrew Boff, the Conservative housing
spokesman on the London assembly, commented: “There was a clear statement that 50 per cent was what he wanted. Now this has become a long-term aspiration.” Khan said he now planned to “move towards a long-term strategic goal” of half of new homes being genuinely affordable and stressed that “fixing the housing crisis will be a marathon, not a sprint”. He believes this is an important first step towards delivering 50 per cent by the end of the decade.
90,000 homes Housing White Paper due this month
The Government’s new Housing White Paper is expected to be published in January, according to the Communities Secretary Sajid Javid. He has promised a range of radical plans to
boost the housing supply. Given his prior commitment to “do everything it takes” to unlock the planning and development log jam, it will be interesting to see whether landbanking by the volume builders will be tackled. There will also be calls for more support for small and medium sized builders, as well as
measures to assist local councils. Housing Minister Gavin Barwell has said the White Paper will tackle planning, housing supply, tenure mix and investment.
“There will also be calls for more support for small and medium sized builders, as well as measures to assist local councils”
Khan also said he would grant £3.15bn allocated to City Hall by the Chancellor in the Autumn Statement to housing associations who build a minimum of 50 per cent affordable homes. It is estimated the money will fund at least 90,000 affordable homes over the next six-year period, an increase of nearly 50 per cent on the previous six years. Just 13 per cent of the new homes
approved in London in 2014/15 were classed as affordable, which includes rents as high as 80 per cent of market rates. That is down from almost a third in 2007/08. “London is in the midst of a housing crisis,
with thousands of Londoners priced out of a city they call home,” said the Mayor. “These announcements demonstrate real progress on the long road towards fixing London’s housing crisis.”
www.housingmmonline.co.uk | HMM January 2017 | 5
New affordability target in London
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