Who is Simon Clarke, the man now in charge of housing?

Who is Simon Clarke, the man now in charge of housing?

Liz Truss has named Simon Clarke, the Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland MP, as her new Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). He is currently the youngest member of Truss’s Cabinet.

Clarke, who is 37, replaces Greg Clark, and becomes the sixth person to fill the role since 2018. Clarke previously served as a junior minister of state at the Ministry of Housing in 2020, was previously the Chief Secretary to the Treasury prior to this post and is also a qualified solicitor.

Clarke has previously described housebuilding targets as a “toxic distraction” backing Truss’s opposition to top-down building targets. He also supported Truss’s housing policies during the Conservative Party Leadership contest as he tweeted:

“Building more good homes is a top priority. Creating rational incentives and reassurances for communities to embrace them is vital.

The cult of top-down targets, however, has become a toxic distraction and Liz Truss is right to say she would scrap them.”

In addition to this, he supported the government’s Stamp Duty holiday during the pandemic claiming it was “the right thing to do to make sure we did not see a collapse of the market”.

Following his appointment, Clarke commented:

“It’s a huge honour to be appointed Secretary of State for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Delivering on levelling up for communities in all parts of our country, unlocking the homes we need and supporting the economic growth that is so central to Liz Truss’ government is our mission – will give it my all.

This is a department that I know really well, and which I am so looking forward to returning to – the commitment and expertise of officials there on themes as diverse as homelessness, building safety and devolution is second to none.”

The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) welcomes the appointment of the new Secretary of State for DLUHC and hopes to continue to work pro-actively with the Department to help boost local communities with more quality homes built by small, local house builders.

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said:

“We are hopeful that with new leadership at the helm this will be an opportunity for the Department to focus on the decline of the nation’s small, local house builders. With the country desperately in need of housing, it should be SME developers that deliver the numbers. But they are hampered by planning laws that have pushed many from the market. An easier to navigate planning system will also make incoming environmental requirements more manageable for small builders.”

Meaningful delivery for the UK’s local house builders is a win-win. It creates local jobs and vocational skills routes in communities. It also helps boost local economies and delivers homes that reflect their community. All of which delivers growth in every part of the UK.”

Ben Woolman, Director at Woolbro Group, also commented:

“As one of the few vocal supporters of planning reform, Simon Clarke’s appointment to levelling up Secretary is cause for cautious celebration in the property sector.

It does, however, remain to be seen as to whether his apparent support for developing the Green Belt will one day find him at loggerheads with the new PM’s penchant for brownfield development.

A sensible first step for Mr Clarke would be to work with the new Chancellor towards replacing the Help to Buy scheme – which effectively ends next month – giving the property industry a much-needed boost of confidence.”

Andy Sommerville, Director at Search Acumen, added:

“It’s bizarre to think the job of Housing Secretary has become such a fleeting, high-turnover role when most people spend a big chunk of their youth stretching for the funds to get onto the property ladder and then three decades or more paying their mortgage.

At 37 years of age, Simon Clarke isn’t much older than today’s average first-time buyer, but he will inherit a raft of housing market reviews from previous administrations to point him directly towards the issues holding back the property market.

Given years of big-picture thinking and grand policy promises, it’s high time to move on from consultations to construction if we want to tackle the affordability crisis, as well as investing more in local, regional and national infrastructure to better connect communities. To deliver a lasting impact, housing policy also needs to throw every ounce of its weight behind bytes as well as bricks and accelerate the digitisation of the property market.”

Timothy Douglas, Head of Policy and Campaigns for Propertymark, has called for “stability” in the role as he stated the doors DLUHC have been “revolving at some pace in recent years”. He also claimed:

“High on Simon Clarke’s to-do list must be policies that help to close the gap between supply and demand in the sales and rental markets, so it’s encouraging to see his early commitment to unlocking the homes that are desperately needed across all tenures to meet the demands of a population that is growing and living longer.

On levelling up, there are challenges and opportunities for our sector. For example, our commercial member agents are concerned about the practicalities of enforced ‘auctions’ of empty high street properties. It is essential Mr Clarke’s team works with property professionals to understand the market to ensure their policies are workable.”

However, Clarke will have to contend with losing one of his housing ministers as Eddie Hughes resigned from the DLUHC on the 8th September. He was the minister behind the Renters Reform Bill. Hughes stated:

“I have decided to hand back by red box in return for the opportunity to spend yet more time working for my constituents in Walsall North, championing their causes in Parliament. Thank you to all in the rough sleeping & housing sectors for support during my time as a minister.”

Nicola Gooch and Claire Petricca-Riding, solicitors from Irwin Mitchell, have put out a statement and calling for an end to the “revolving doors” of housing ministers at the DLUHC). The statement read:

“England is in the middle of an acute housing shortage. We are trying to fix it with a planning system that is close to breaking point.

The reasons for this are myriad, complex and interconnected. There is no silver bullet. No single solution. Tackling the crisis will take a concerted effort, over a considerable period of time, by people who truly understand the sector.

The constant churn of senior ministers at DLUHC has not helped. In fact, it just adds to the sense of uncertainty and instability which is leading many local planning authorities to delay or defer work on their local plans.”

The statement went on to highlight that there have been 11 housing ministers in the past 10 years. They added:

“This level of turnover makes it almost impossible for the politicians in charge of resolving our housing crisis to truly understand it. A situation which does not help the consistency or quality of decision making.

If the new Prime Minister is serious about tackling the housing crisis, we need a significant period of stability at DLUHC. Let’s hope Simon Clarke is up to the job and stays the course.”

Joseph Mullane

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