What could Labour's housing policy look like?

Labour has vowed to "get Britain building" in the latest hints of the new government's housing policy.

Speaking at Labour's annual party conference this week, Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said Labour is "tackling the Tories' housing emergency", warning that the "simple aspiration" of a safe, secure and affordable home is "further out of reach than ever".

She promised that the government would build "decent homes for working people" as she laid out the party's plans.

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The housing sector is set for a "significant transformation" under Labour, said Winkworth, with aims to tackle "longstanding issues of affordability, security and quality".

Planning overhaul

One of Labour's "first acts" in government, said The Guardian, was to reinstate mandatory house-building targets as it seeks to build 1.5 million homes over the next five years.

The "default answer" to brownfield development should now be a yes, said the government.

The "biggest game-changer", said Construction News, is that councils must release "grey belt land" – "previously developed land in the green belt" – for development.

Additionally, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has revealed details of new "planning passports", said The Guardian, which would wave through "any proposal that meets high standards for design and quality".

Renters' rights

The government unveiled its long-awaited Renters' Rights Bill earlier this month.

This bans no-fault evictions, said MoneyWeek, as part of plans to "clamp down" on rogue landlords and to support tenants who may fear eviction if they complain about "poor practice and unfair rent increases".

Landlords will instead need to "justify why they want the property back or need to remove the tenant", said the financial website.

The legislation will set out grounds for possession but there are concerns, said Ashfords, that this will "further overwhelm the court system". It could also make the eviction process "even more protracted and expensive for landlords".

Energy-efficient homes

The Labour Party has "resuscitated" the Conservatives' policy of banning landlords from renting out properties unless they meet a minimum energy performance certificate (EPC) rating of C, from 2030, said Letting Agent Today.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband used his speech at the Labour Party conference to launch a "vitriolic attack" on landlords who rent sub-standard homes, said The Negotiator, and warned of going "much further".

The policy will apply to private rentals and social homes, said BBC News. One third of social homes, around 1.2 million properties, are "currently rated D or below" and the government has promised £13.2 billion in grants and low-interest loans over the next five years to help meet the deadline.

Decent homes standard

Inspired by Awaab's Law in the social housing sector, the government is now consulting on a decent homes standard for the private rental sector.

The law is named after two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died in 2020 after being exposed to toxic mould at his Rochdale home, and aims to address damp and mould issues.

The government said it will legislate for Awaab's Law this autumn, said Property Reporter, ensuring that "damp and mould must be investigated and remedied to set timescales". Further legislation following consultation will ensure that "safe, secure housing is the standard" for tenants in both the social and private rental sector.

There should be "some accountability for tenants", said estate agent trade body Propertymark, meaning landlords should not be held accountable for a renter's "lack of care or neglect".

Right to Buy

Rayner has said she wants to make Right to Buy – which allows council tenants to buy their homes at a discounted price – a "fair system" for taxpayers and tenants.

She wants to "reverse the tide" of social housing being lost to Right to Buy by building "more social homes than we lose" in the government's first financial year, said the Local Government Chronicle, but hasn't yet provided details on how this would be achieved, beyond what has been already announced on allowing councils to use sale funds to build more social housing.

Leasehold reform

Labour intends to "finish what the Conservatives started", said CMS, with its Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill. 

The bill aims to "fill the gaps" in leasehold reform, added MoneyWeek, by regulating ground rents, protecting leaseholders from losing their homes, banning new leasehold flat sales and making commonhold, which provides freehold home ownership for flats, the default tenure.

The changes will "likely be done in stages" and could take "many months", said the HomeOwners Alliance as further consultation and secondary legislation will be needed.