‘Affordable' homes plan sparks concern

Around half of the new homes built under a £12bn programme will be ‘affordable’ in a bid to help people onto the property ladder, the Government has said.

Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said the rest of the funding will go to social housing and other discounted rental homes.

Housing charity Shelter warned more cash was needed for "genuinely affordable" social homes in the face of the coronavirus crisis and Labour said the plans risk "further dwindling" the number of homes for social rent.

Mr Jenrick said: "Thanks to the range of flexible ownership options, more families will be able to realise their dreams of owning their own home, with half of these being made available for ownership."

Shelter chief executive Polly Neate said: "With an unprecedented recession under way, major job losses on the horizon, the Government must invest more in social housing than its current plans allow for.

"Social homes are designed to be genuinely affordable, which is exactly what we need right now. "Discounted home ownership schemes are not."

The shadow housing secretary Than ga mD ebb on aires aid the Government’ s plans “risk further hitting the number of homes available for social rent."

The Local Government Association' s housing spokesman David Renard said: "With more than one million households on council housing waiting lists, it is vital that we build more housing for social rent and look forward to seeing more clarity around how this will be delivered."