Arcadis calls for cross-party collaboration to deliver on housing promises

Arcadis has called for the government to work in cross-party co-operation to deliver the new housing the country needs.

The consultant called on the political parties to act as it unveiled new research, which reports that every new home built contributes £316,000 to the wider UK economy (see graphic below).

The fiscal impact of housebuilding on the country’s economy shows the sense of urgency national and regional governments need to adopt to take advantage of investment opportunities as the negotiations for Brexit begin to keep the country growing.

It is also important that British cities are able to compete internationally to attract investment, labour and skills, which can only be achieved via placemaking, of which housing is one of the most important components, the report said.

Creating developments with flexible housing tenures at every level of affordability, including multiple purchase options, as well as leasing arrangements will not only help to solve the housing crisis, but prove attractive to big businesses and investors.

Peter Hogg, head of government and municipals and regeneration spokesperson for Arcadis, said: “Following the shock election result, government must now work closely in cross-party cooperation to genuinely deliver on housing promises, along with devolved administrations up and down the country needing to take the lead around starting to build.

“Public sector construction is something we haven’t seen on any sort of scale in decades. But, if it were to take place at the same time as sponsored investment in offsite, high-tech construction methods, it could make a genuine difference to our country and its people.”  

“Brexit has fired the starting gun on our race to compete globally. City regions have the potential to become inward investment hot-spots, but only if local government seizes the opportunity by starting to build themselves at the same time as encouraging developers to do the same.  

“The use of statutory powers to allow developers to build and upgrade property in central areas with easy access to employment, transport and amenities, as well as tax incentives and a public sector procurement drive could create a true ripple effect.”

The report from Arcadis revealed that building just one new home can generate £250,000 in wider benefits through job creation and tax, while £53,000 is generated for businesses through the lowering of wage premiums and money spent in the local area.

The local community also benefits from nearly £13,000 from developers investing in roads, leisure facilities and additional affordable housing, the report Building Homes – Making Places said.

Hogg added: “The benefits of building more homes are much greater than previously thought.

“Clearly, this is an extremely complex conundrum to solve, but if we start making some real progress, the next ten-to-fifteen years could see a housing boom the likes of which have not been seen in over a century.”