It is clear that the creation of a dedicated Ministry of Housing is not just necessary but critical to provide a core plank of what the public expects from the government.
Despite jokes about the shuffling of deck chairs, the creation of four new government departments was welcomed across the private sector and in Whitehall. Such changes may not provide much of an electoral boost, but are an opportunity to better balance the government’s packed legislative agenda and set the civil service up for success.
But in the midst of this reorganisation, housing has been completely overlooked. The remit of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities includes local government, devolution, regional inequality, homelessness and levelling up. Even for Michael Gove, often considered the most competent cabinet minister, this is a lot of ground to cover. But the portfolio seems especially unwieldy when housing is added to the mix.
With Rachel Maclean’s appointment in February as the sixth housing minister in 12 months and mammoth legislation such as the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill getting fast-tracked through parliament, this lack of coherent policy comes at a time when the UK housing sector is in flux and needs the cogs of Westminster to be in working order.
The creation of a Ministry of Housing could facilitate a laser focus on housing delivery and extricate it from the quagmire of levelling up. This would give a boost of confidence to industry stakeholders who face a myriad of non-political threats, including inflation, supply chain instability, shaky investor confidence and the threat of interest rate rises.
Many are questioning whether the Conservatives will continue to be the party of home ownership. For Rishi Sunak, creating a Ministry of Housing would be a good place to start in repairing this image.
Joshua Lambkin, partner, Pagefield
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