Simon Clarke, the housing secretary uses phases to reassure. He is ‘steadfastly committed’ to build more homes, but pledges to ‘go further’. With these worthy intentions it is right to wait a few weeks.
In areas of chronic and acute housing shortage, like Wokingham Borough, and Windsor and Maidenhead, the Conservative conflicts will come face to face. The growth dilemma is simple: local alarm v. national need.
The land is there. Contrary to widespread myths, even in popular, prosperous Thames Valley there is plenty of unprotected white land. But zero brownfield land. For local leadership there are battle hardened veterans like Theresa May and Sir John Redwood. After 30+years Sir John is in the hot seat. His constituency is the host candidate. A blindfold of Nelsonian effect, or advanced myopia will be strenuouos for Sir John to throw aside.
Haphazard, uncontrolled spatial housing distribution on the one hand, and a Stalinist fixation with housing numbers too, spawn a rare combination of free market and regulated market war. The outlook is an interesting autumn.
Ian Campbell
7 October 2022
