Politics of renewal: Labour's vision for 'new towns'

Various Government agencies were established to deliver these new towns, the most impactful being the 1961 Commission for New Towns (CNT). CNT had powers of compulsory purchase, land acquisition, infrastructure delivery, and direct development. In 2008, these powers were passed to the Homes and Communities Agency. In 2018, these new town development powers were vested in Homes England, the current arms-length agency of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). These new towns powers remain vested in Homes England and could be made operational again.

The most recent example of a government-initiated new town or garden city is Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, established by the Government in 2015 to increase housing delivery around the HS1 station at Ebbsfleet, North Kent. 15,000 homes had been consented in 2015, when less than 100 were being delivered pa. With support from Homes England, Kent County Council, Dartford, and Gravesham Councils, DLUCH established a development corporation at Ebbsfleet, with a dedicated team and planning powers. Ebbsfleet is currently delivering over 600 homes pa, with 4,000 homes completed in February this year. 30% of those homes are affordable, making it one of the best performing housing sites in England.

Not every new town was a success, but lessons have been learned. The upfront costs of site assembly and early infrastructure provision are common factors in all new town and major expansion projects. So, securing funding is key. This can be achieved through a subsidy or risk-capital, partnerships with major landowners, key stakeholders, and entities such as pension funds. Upfront capital needs to be provided to get selected sites ‘ready’ for the housebuilding sector.

Up until the 1980s, social housing made up around 45% of all housebuilding. The Labour policy suggests that housebuilders must build that quota. But unless the delivery of such housing is going to be enabled by the Government, it won’t happen. Private capital expects a return on its investment, and even public capital increasingly requires a commercial return. Therefore, access to state funding and patient-capital to deliver a viable development needs to be considered from the outset.

Certainly, it’s not just about home delivery, but also about creating sustainable communities. For a new town to be successful, investment in early rail, road, sustainable initiatives, health, education, employment, and community infrastructure is vital. All these aspects require consideration for skills and supply chain of materials; England has a shortage of both.

To progress a new towns policy, the UK’s planning policy also needs to be overhauled and made more robust, to allow our main city cores and surrounding hinterlands to grow. We have a complex planning system working against productivity and one that is prohibiting growth. Approximately 14 out of 20 of our largest cities (our ‘engines of growth’) cannot grow because the land is constrained by the Green Belt and other planning policies. Local Plan adoption has been a 20+ year challenge with varied success and it’s clear that it needs to be simplified. While development corporations with planning powers may be the answer, these need to be established quickly with effective governance. It’s important to note that they are not always well-received locally.

Building new homes also goes beyond local plans. Viability for development is a real issue and in seeking more meaningful planning reforms, we cannot ignore the current Section 106 and Community Infrastructure Levy regime.

Major planning applications, even those excluding significant infrastructure, usually take 18+ months to secure a resolution to grant. The complicated nature of Section 106 negotiations and a plethora of other conditions often extend this period to more than two years before groundwork can begin. We need a simplified planning system that is more effective in enabling large-scale new communities to be delivered.

We are wholly supportive of the creation of the New Towns Programme and consider it to be a vital initiative to help Britain build new homes at the level needed. Still, substantial government intervention, investment, and leadership will be needed to achieve this ambition.