| Topic: | Housing starts | |
| Posted by: | Jeremy Parkinson | |
| Date/Time: | 03/01/25 08:41:00 |
| The Mayor's record on housing starts is, like that on crime, quite nuanced but it also isn't really one that can be described as abject failure. During his first term he managed to achieve a significant boost in numbers over his predecessor and still averages over 10,000 more starts per year. He also oversaw the building of the highest number of affordable homes in a single year since the seventies. However, this has clearly all fallen apart in the last two years with affordable housing starts down by 88% in 2023/24. The reasons for this are various - higher interest rates, increased construction costs, increased costs for landlords particularly Housing Associations due to new regulations, reduced central government support all of which are outside the Mayor's control. His record on housing seems to mirror that on crime, moderately successful but ultimately undermined by broader economic and political factors. As for the other complaints, TfL's finances are not out of control rather on an operating basis it is generating a surplus, there is no problem with an increase in PR spend if it is effective and no evidence has been presented that it isn't, a pragmatic approach to union demands is in the interests of Londoners if the cost of the strike is outweighed by the cost of settling it. |