Housing bosses plan zero-carbon timetable

The Construction Products Association and the Home Builders Federation (HBF) are teaming up to implement the government’s policy of making all new housing zero carbon by 2016.

The two bodies will use next week’s environmental housing summit to unveil a 120-month timetable to achieve carbon emission-free homes. This conference is to be co-chaired by housing minister Yvette Cooper and Stewart Baseley, the HBF’s executive chairman.

Michael Ankers, the Construction Products Association’s chief executive, said the timetable, which will be published in the spring, will lay out on a month-by-month basis what needs to be done to achieve the government’s goal.

He added that the Construction Products Association’s involvement was vital because many of the steps needed to achieve sustainable housing had to be taken by suppliers.

He also welcomed the government’s decision, announced before Christmas, to put John Callcutt, the chief executive of English Partnerships (EP), in charge of a review of eco-friendly housebuilding. Callcutt said last month that he would not return to EP after the report was completed.

The former chief executive of housebuilder Crest Nicholson, said his review would look at the structure of the housebuilding industry and the way it was financed.

“There is nothing that is off limits,” said Callcutt. “The financial sector, the supply chain and their stakeholders all have to be brought in. They are all vital parts of having an integrated approach to solving the problem.”

The financial sector, the supply chain and their stakeholders have to be brought in

John Callcutt

Alan Cherry, the chairman of Countryside Properties, echoed Ankers’ welcome of Callcutt’s review.

“He is very experienced as a developer and will know how developers can be encouraged to deliver on sustainability,” he said.

Callcutt’s departure from EP clears the way for the organisation’s merger with the Housing Corporation.

Building understands that the Treasury has approved the merger following the submission by the communities department of a revised cost–benefit analysis for the exercise.

This shows that the costs of setting up the new organisation, such as redundancy payments, will require increased public funding until 2011 or 2012. After that the efficiencies resulting from having a single body will begin to generate savings.

Speaking before Christmas, Baroness Ford, the chairwoman of EP, said a decision about whether to set up the new organisation would be made within the “next few weeks”.