…Funding will push the government’s 10-year housing programme beyond £40bn, while mayors and regional leaders are set to gain greater powers and access to new borrowing facilities.
The United Kingdom government is set to allocate more than £1bn to social and affordable housing in England as part of its forthcoming Budget, taking total funding for its 10-year housing programme beyond £40bn.
The announcement, expected in Chancellor John Healey’s Budget on Wednesday, will form part of wider measures aimed at accelerating house-building, strengthening regional investment and giving local leaders greater control over economic development.
Under the proposals, councils will also receive support to borrow money from the government at preferential interest rates to finance housing projects. The arrangement is intended to make it easier for local authorities to invest in new homes and respond to housing needs in their communities.
The government is also planning to give mayors and regional leaders greater powers over investment decisions, with the aim of reducing their reliance on fragmented funding schemes administered by central government.
Healey said the reforms would give English cities and regions the “right to decide their own future”.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the measures were designed to transfer decision-making powers to leaders who understand their communities and their needs.
The Treasury said an initial £285m in transitional seed funding would be made available next year to support mayors and local leaders in developing projects and reducing dependence on multiple competitive funding applications to Whitehall.
Areas that have not yet become strategic authorities will also be able to access a share of the funding to unlock projects that could contribute to economic growth.
The government will additionally work with mayors to design a £1.5bn borrowing facility from 2028. The facility is expected to give regional leaders access to capital for locally determined priorities, including housing, high-street regeneration and transport infrastructure.
“Mayors and local leaders know what their communities need to grow, which is why we are giving them more money, more power and more capacity to get projects moving, build homes and make the right decisions for their areas,” Healey said.
Burnham said the government was ending a system in which local leaders had to repeatedly seek funding from Westminster, arguing that this was not an effective way to run the country.
Claire Ward, chairwoman of the UK Mayors Network and Labour’s East Midlands mayor, said increased devolution would provide regional leaders with the resources and authority needed to turn development plans into lasting improvements for communities.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan also welcomed the prospect of greater investment flexibility, pointing to potential infrastructure projects such as the West London Orbital route, extensions to the Bakerloo Underground line and Docklands Light Railway, and development of Stratford International station.
The Budget is also expected to include additional support for small breweries, with the Treasury saying the chancellor wants to help reverse the difficulties facing Britain’s beer producers.
The announcement follows concerns over 310 jobs at Marston’s Brewery in Burton-upon-Trent after owners Carlsberg Britvic disclosed plans to close operations at the historic brewing site.
The issue was raised at Prime Minister’s Questions earlier in the week, highlighting the pressure facing parts of the country’s brewing industry.
Meanwhile, Alex Depledge, the departing Treasury entrepreneurship adviser, has criticised the government’s approach to start-ups and growing businesses ahead of the Budget.
Speaking to The Sunday Times, Depledge argued that start-ups were being treated as a secondary consideration in economic policy and called for greater support to help high-growth companies develop in Britain.
She warned that failing to support businesses as they scale could limit their contribution to economic growth.
