UK Housebuilding Industry 'Faces Crisis in Next 12 Months'

The UK housebuilding industry faces a major crisis in the next 12 months unless the supply of construction labour is dramatically increased, a new report has warned. KPMG and the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry say there are simply not enough skilled workers needed to deliver the 2015 pipeline of housing. And the 'Skills to Build' report claims the situation will only get worse with 400,000 of the current workforce expected to retire in the next five to 10 years. The report says the number of construction workers needs to grow by 20% just to deliver the £96 billion infrastructure pipeline for the next three years. Download the report from the KPMG website.

Labour Mocks Lib Dems As Its Peers Vote To Keep Bedroom Tax

Liberal Democrat travails over the bedroom tax were mocked by Labour after its peers voted to keep the tax despite a call by the party president, Tim Farron, to oppose it. Farron is largely working to influence the party manifesto, but Labour challenged why only two Liberal Democrat peers had voted against the tax during a Lords debate. Peers voted by 188 to 173, government majority 15, against a Labour motion strongly criticising regulations closing a loophole in the policy. The shadow welfare minister, Baroness Sherlock, told peers: "I was delighted to read the reports from Tim Farron that the Liberal Democrats were going to withdraw their support from the bedroom tax." But Lord German, who speaks for the Lib Dems on social security in the Lords, told Sherlock: "I asked Tim Farron if that is what he said and he did not say that." Read more on the Guardian website.

Labour Loses Housing Benefit U-Turn Vote

The government has seen off a Labour challenge to its housing benefit changes in the House of Commons. MPs voted by a majority of 26 to reject what critics have dubbed the "bedroom tax", removing some payments if council tenants' properties are deemed to be under-occupied. But two Liberal Democrat MPs - Andrew George and party president Tim Farron - backed Labour's motion. Read more on the BBC website.

Universal Credit Project Riddled With Problems

The National Audit Office said universal credit, the £2.4bn project meant to consolidate six welfare payments into one, has been beset by "weak management, ineffective control and poor governance".  Ministers have already written off £34m wasted on failed IT programmes for the project run by the Department for Work and Pensions and may be forced to delay its national launch beyond 2017, the NAO says.  The report was seized upon by Labour as evidence that Iain Duncan Smith, the work and pensions secretary, has covered up significant problems that could put welfare claimants and their families at risk. Liam Byrne, the shadow work and pension secretary, described universal credit as a "Titanic-sized IT disaster". Download a copy of the report from the NAO website.

Labour Party Housing Manifesto

Labour's housing manifesto sets out how they will help provide everyone with a secure, decent and affordable home in a safe community. Key points are;
*Reform the council house finance system to enable councils to build up to 10,000 homes a year before the end of the next Parliament
*Work with housing associations and councils to set out New Deals that meet future challenges together.
*Provide all councils with more funding to maintain the Decent Homes standard and remain committed to completing the programme.
*Protect the secure tenancies, affordable rents and rights to guaranteed standards of service of council and housing association tenants.
*Begin the new Warm Homes programme to make public housing greener, warmer and cheaper to run. To view the manifesto in full, please on the logo below.

Parties Reveal Vision for Future of Housing

The three main political parties outlined radically different proposals for social housing in their manifestos this week.
Labour
*Create a new form of affordable housing for families on modest incomes
*Make ‘savings’ in regeneration funding
*Tackle ASB with a new ‘respect’ standard for the private rented sector
Conservative
*Pledge to ‘respect’ tenures and rents of social tenants
*Introduce a ‘foot on the ladder’ programme to offer an equity stake to good social tenants
*Pilot a right to move scheme and introduce a national home-swap programme
Liberal Democrat
*Reform public sector borrowing requirement to allow councils to build more homes
*Review housing revenue account subsidy system
*Launch a £1.1 billion programme to bring 250,000 empty homes back into use
Read more on the Inside Housing website.

Tories Attack 'Shocking' Labour Housing Record

In a report on the widening gap between rich and poor under Labour, the Tories highlight statistics showing the number of households on local authority waiting lists rising to 1.8 million in 2009, and house building figures dropping. It shows that 18,428 homes a year were built under the Labour government between 1997 and 2008, while 40,538 homes were built each year when the Conservatives were in power. The report, Labour’s two nations, says people living in the most deprived areas are twice as likely to be on a waiting list for social housing, and households are four times more likely to be homeless and in priority need of housing. Read more on the Inside Housing website.