"Barwell must do all he can to give local authorities the ability to build more social housing. A lack of social housing is the key issue and the PRS - via private developers - cannot manage this problem alone."
As part of Theresa May’s reshuffle Croydon MP Gavin Barwell has been appointed housing minister - though this is still not a Cabinet position which is somewhat disappointing.
So what can we expect from Mr Barwell?
He has been an MP since 2010 and whilst apparently very experienced within Westminster and other government departments he has had no other work outside of politics, which he entered straight from university. Perhaps the fact he’s spent over 20 years working with other departments could be a help in working with other ministers to get things done. His experience and relationships may give him some clout.
According to his official website he has already been busy visiting various potential sites for development and he has tweeted that he is looking forward to working with and across various groups to look at ways to build more houses.
Barwell’s appointment comes as a new report from the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee has been published highlighting a somewhat ‘old’ issue that he will need to get to grips with. The report criticised government policy on housebuilding and over reliance on the private sector to meet demand. This is by no means a breakthrough revelation. It has been obvious for some time that the private sector cannot cope with the housing industry crisis alone. It is completely impractical. It is clear the pace of building new homes is not keeping up with demand but this can’t be left solely to private developers to rectify. Indeed Barwell must do all he can to give local authorities the ability to build more social housing. A lack of social housing is the key issue and the PRS - via private developers - cannot manage this problem alone.
A robust plan is needed and it’s clear this will take many years of substantial building and investment. Furthermore, of course if we build new large scale developments infrastructure - roads and transport links in particular - will need addressing too.
It’s a big job, lets hope Mr Barwell is up to it!
