Labour admits likely failure on 1.5m new homes target

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner says there’s only a “slim chance” it will meet its target of building 1.5m homes in England by the next election.

Speaking on the BBC, Rayner says she’s not giving up but she blamed “headwinds” – inflation in the construction industry and the Iran War in particular.

She says the government will keep the goal which had been a “stretch target” but that she was “honest with the public” that it would be difficult to achieve.

Rayner says the government is doing its part by investing billions in social and affordable homes.

“The prime minister wants us to make sure we’re building council houses. He’s made that absolutely, fundamentally clear.

“We’re seeing home starts up by 15% last year, so we are making a difference.”

Labour promised to hit the target through building both private and social housing by the end of the current parliament, meaning summer 2029 at the latest.

This implied an average of 300,000 new properties would be needed each year – a rate of construction not seen in decades, and not even being neared at the moment.

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