My Lords, in moving this amendment I will also speak to the 11 other amendments standing in my name and that of my noble friend Lady Bakewell of somewhere in Somerset.
We are moving now to Part 1, Chapter 1 and Clauses 1 to 7, and, possibly for the first time, to a part of the Bill that is causing widespread concern. My amendments and the other four in this group, with which I have considerable sympathy, seek to address at least one of those concerns about starter homes. I certainly have no objection to starter homes. As far as I know, neither do many other people, so the issue is not about starter homes as such. In the right circumstances and the right places they can make a useful addition to housing provision for some people.
The concern here is that Chapter 1 of Part 1 refers only to starter homes. The present wording imposes a clear duty on local authorities, as planning authorities, to promote starter homes, with no mention of any other tenures. Councils’ ability to choose a mix of home ownership tenures for planning obligations is completely fettered by the Bill as drafted. The concern is that in Section 106 discussions, for example, local authorities are likely to say—or at least to feel—that they have to deliver a certain number of starter homes and therefore that they cannot specify other forms of affordable ownership provision. I am sure we will hear from the Minister that that is not the Government’s intention but I fear it is very likely to be the effect.
The purpose of my amendments is to widen the duty on local authorities to promote home ownership schemes, including starter homes. It is about home
ownership in that we recognise the priority that this Government give to home ownership. I have considerable sympathy with Amendment 37, which refers to,
“new homes across all tenures”,
but these amendments bring in the wider range of home ownership schemes.
As I have said, starter homes provide a useful means but the role of the local authority, as the planning authority, as well as sometimes the housing authority, is to meet all types of housing need, to be in the best position to judge what the local needs are—local needs are the key to this—and what type of tenure, in what volume, places and circumstances, is appropriate to that area. It may well include starter homes but it most certainly will include other types of home ownership and other forms of tenure. Therefore, we are concerned. I think there is widespread concern from the LGA, among others, about the fettering of local authority discretion in this way. I declare my interest as one of the vice-presidents of the LGA. The aim is to allow local authorities to determine for themselves—if I might say so, in the spirit of localism—what is best and most suitable for their areas without having necessarily to feel that they must give priority to any particular form.
I mentioned the LGA. It has indeed said that starter homes will be outside the reach of all people in need of affordable housing in 220 council areas. That is two-thirds of the whole country. Starter homes will not be effective for them. I am sure that other contributors to this debate will want to speak about that.
I have been approached on this subject by a range of organisations but particularly by Future Housing Review, which is supported by the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust and has a particular interest in shared ownership, which can make a significant contribution to housing need and is indeed one of—not the only one, by a long way—the housing provisions that we are talking about. I was pleased to note that in the Minister’s replies to a Question this afternoon she made several references to shared ownership schemes. I hope now that she has been briefed she will be able to expand a little more on that when she replies to this debate.
5.45 pm
I have a few questions on shared ownership, which, as I say, is simply one method of provision of affordable housing in appropriate circumstances. There has been increasing interest in shared ownership as one way in which the housing crisis can be tackled. Back in March 2015, the then Government promised a review of long-term options for ownership, saying that,
“the Government will undertake a Review of shared ownership focusing on possible longer term options for change to report to Ministers in the Summer”.
That, of course, was summer 2015—last year. So far as I know, that review has not materialised at all. I wonder if the Minister can tell us what has happened to it. Did the incoming Government make a decision not to go ahead with the review? Did it get buried among all the other things that a new Government have had to do? Is it perhaps now on a slow burner and might it be available for summer 2016? I hope we can be told what has happened to the review and that we will be told it is still ongoing and perhaps now we can give it a nudge to on-go just a little bit faster.
There is an urgent need to review shared ownership models because the present Homes and Communities Agency model is said to be seriously flawed. The Government have announced very welcome funding of £4.1 billion so that registered providers can increase provision of shared ownership, but a detailed prospectus is still awaited so we still do not know the details of that programme. Again, I wonder if the Minister will be able to tell us when we will get those details.
I think these amendments will lead to a very good and useful debate on one of the concerns here. There are, of course, others, not least the issue of discounts, which we will move to later. But I very much hope that the Government will consider seriously the intention of these amendments and what is said in this debate, and will move towards at least recognising and, I hope, meeting the widespread concerns that the chapter on shared ownership is very much skewing the need, which we all recognise, to meet the housing crisis and to do so by providing a wide range of housing provision. Without these amendments, providers will not be able effectively to deliver a full range of housing ownership tenures. The spending by registered providers of £4.1 billion of funding in the open market to deliver shared ownership schemes will not represent best value and the initiative to increase shared ownership may tend to drive up prices. I beg to move.