Chancellor Jeremy Hunt promised £242M of investment for housing in the House of Commons today as he reeled of his plan for the country during the Spring Budget.
The Chancellor confirmed that under the conservative government, the UK has already seen one million new homes and is set to see 8,000 more as he unveiled plans for investment. The budget meeting saw MPs jeering chambers as Hunt proposed investment in ‘UK families, and working families’ alongside plans for tax cuts and investment in small business.
The party said £188M will be invested into property in Sheffield, Blackpool and Liverpool. The £242M will go towards building up Barking Riverside and Canary Wharf as a tech hub – stating the UK is set to become the ‘next Silicone Valley’.
Property plans also included a companies led housing scheme in Cambridge to bolster the growing scientific sector and has unveiled a multi-million pound deal with Hitachi for a nuclear site in Wylfa, Wales.
Hunt said :
‘The site will bolster our nuclear ambitions. We want to create more jobs, lower taxes and boost public services. The UK has had more AI start-ups than EU countries and we plan to attract investment industries.”
“We are launching a new £20m Community Led Housing scheme supporting local communities to deliver the developments they want and need,” he added.
There were rumours that the budget would bring in 99 % investment schemes for housing, stamp duty changes and surprise tax cuts but instead there has been more focus on working families and ‘backing the Great British Pub’.
John Jones, head of conveyancing at Jackson Lees has commented on the budget saying:
“Today’s budget is a missed opportunity to help those struggling to get onto the property ladder. I would, at the very least, have liked to have seen a return of the ‘Help to Buy’ scheme and an extension of the Stamp Duty Land Tax holiday.
“Whilst the promise of more housing is a positive step towards addressing the chronic shortage that exists across the UK, it does little to help those who are wanting to buy now.
“Some of the measures announced by the chancellor may put money back into people’s pockets, but it is loose change compared to the amounts needed to buy property and, particularly in a cost-of-living crisis, continues to put home ownership out of reach for far too many.”
