Michelle Scrogham

I absolutely agree that this Government’s interventions and funding will make those changes. This Bill, though, creates additional expectations, without addressing the problem of delivery. The Liberal Democrats were not powerless observers during the worsening of our housing crisis; they spent five years in government. They sat at the Cabinet table, and they voted for coalition Budgets. They supported policies that saw local government funding slashed and planning departments across the country stretched ever more thinly. If they believed that local communities needed stronger powers to bring forward affordable housing sites, why did they not legislate for that when they were in office? The truth is that too often the Liberal Democrats seek to campaign against the consequences of decisions that they helped to make in government. This Labour Government are pursuing a comprehensive strategy to tackle the housing crisis. We have committed to delivering 1.5 million social homes over this Parliament. At the 2025 spending review, the Government confirmed £39 billion in funding over the next 10 years, as has been mentioned. This provides the certainty needed for providers to plan ambitious housing development projects over the next 10 years.