Muyiwa Oki welcomes Labour’s plan for housing
RIBA have welcomed the use of grey belt land for the output of new homes following Angela Rayner’s speech on Labour’s plan for housing.
RIBA president Muyiwa Oki said: “Delays in the planning system have held up necessary development for too long. Measures to unlock brownfield and grey belt land and work alongside local leaders, to speed up delivery of homes where they are needed most, is a vital step.”
Oki also said that architects “stand ready” to design the millions of high quality affordable new homes required and “will prioritise access to green spaces, transport, and social infrastructure such as schools and hospitals - all vital for people and places to thrive.
Oki said that in order to achieve this, the government should “comprehensively resource” local planning departments with the right knowledge and skills to ensure new homes are of a sufficient standard.
> Also read: Rayner announces 40% affordable housing target for New Towns
> Also read: Labour unveils plan to build on ‘grey belt’ land
Angela Rayner said in her speech earlier this week at UK’s Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF) event in Leeds that Labour is pushing for housing delivery on “disused” green belt land termed grey belt.
The plan also proposes that at least half of the housing on grey belt land needs to be affordable. The conservative think tank, Bright Blue, has backed Labour’s decision for grey belt development.
Muyiwa Oki’s comment in full:
”Given the scale and complexity of the housing crisis, commitments to deliver well-designed, high-quality and sustainable homes are most welcome.”
”As architects, we stand ready to take the lead, not only prioritising housing, but also vital access to green spaces, transport and social infrastructure such as schools and hospitals.”
“Delays in the planning system have held up necessary development for too long. Therefore, proposed measures such as unlocking brownfield and grey belt land, and working alongside local leaders to speed up delivery are encouraging.”
”But to make this happen, the Government must also comprehensively resource local planning departments with the skills and expertise needed to ensure all new homes are of the standard people deserve.”
Today’s plan outlines some positive first steps – and we will work with whoever forms the next Government to deliver the volume and quality of homes we need.”
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