Javid blames NIMBYS for housing problems

PLANNERS should ignore NIMBYS, Sajid Javid has said, as the Government came under pressure from ministers to cut stamp duty for first-time buyers.

Speaking at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester the Communities Secretary admitted his party had spent too long allowing older people with large homes to determine housing policy.

His comments came as it emerged Tory ministers are pushing Mrs May to slash stamp duty for first-time buyers. One told The Daily Telegraph: “We are at our best when we are radical and reforming, we should reduce stamp duty for first-time buyers.”

Speaking to the BBC’S John Pienaar yesterday Mr Javid said: “We have been listening too much to those people who are against development under any circumstances.

“They bought their homes 20, 30, 40 years ago, they’re sitting on a nice nest egg and they don’t want to see the next generation go ahead.”

His remarks drew criticism from countryside groups, traditionally supportive of the Conservative Party, but Mr Javid went on to lament the “injustices” of the housing market and vowed to overhaul it with £10 billion more for help-to-buy and new protections for renters, including an incentive package for landlords to persuade them to offer longer tenancies.