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Louise Thomas
Editor
Sadiq Khan oversaw the completion of just 71 new affordable homes in London during the last economic quarter, falling hundreds short of his own target.
The mayor’s Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) also only started work on a further 150 properties between April and June 2024, according to new figures released by the Greater London Authority (GLA) on Wednesday.
The AHP, funded with £4billion of government money and managed by City Hall, was originally meant to deliver 35,000 dwellings across the capital between 2021 and 2026. But the target was cut last year to between 23,900 and 27,200. This amounts to a target of around 1,100 per quarter to hit the lower limit.
Affordable homes are those sold or let through various public and private schemes at 20 per cent below local market value to help individuals who live in the area but may struggle to afford open market prices.
The Tories have written to housing secretary Angela Rayner, demanding she put the GLA under “special measures”, saying the number of affordable homes being built in the capital are “unacceptably low”.
Referring to the latest figures published by GLA, London Assembly member Lord Bailey said: “These numbers are clearly unacceptably low, and are inconsistent with the housebuilding ambitions of both your department and the manifesto on which the Labour government was elected on last month.
“Over the last eight years, the Mayor of London has consistently demonstrated that he is unable to meet the scale of London’s housing challenges, with the number of new homes built in the capital falling to record lows under Sadiq Khan’s leadership.”
Government figures show that there were more ‘net additional dwellings’ created in London during Mr Khan’s first two terms in office than were created during Boris Johnson’s eight-year stint in office.
But the number of net additional dwellings in London for 2023/4 has been provisionally recorded as 14,590 – which would be the lowest for more than two decades. While there was a housing downturn across every other English region during that time period, London saw the greatest decline.
In his letter to Ms Rayner, Lord Bailey added: “We are, therefore, urging you to use your powers as Secretary of State to place the Mayor of London and the GLA in special measures.
“Without tailored support and additional oversight from your department, sadly it is abundantly clear that Sadiq Khan will not be able to deliver the number of homes London requires, and that targets alone are no longer enough to tackle the scale of the problem.
“Given how significant this is for so many people, I genuinely hope that we are able to put political differences aside and give Londoners the best possible chance of having a home of their own.”
Last month, Ms Rayner outlined Labour’s plan for a housing “revolution” across England, with the party planning a major overhaul of the planning system.
She warned that Britain is facing the “most acute housing crisis in living memory”, claiming that the number of new homes is set to drop below 200,000 this year – something Ms Rayner dubbed “unforgivable”.
The overall housing target for the UK will increase to 370,000, replacing the previous Tory government’s advisory target of 300,000 homes per year.
But government officials said London’s target would fall from 100,000 homes per year to 80,000.
Ms Rayner claimed the previous figure was “absolute nonsense” and an “arbitrary figure”, denying that the government is “lowering our ambition for London”.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “The Mayor has hit every Affordable Homes Programme target he has been set, including the landmark target of building 116,000 new genuinely affordable homes in the capital through the last Affordable Homes Programme, while the previous Government failed to hit its national target.
“Despite a doubling of affordable housing completions in 2023-2024 compared to when Sadiq was first elected, these latest figures underline the major challenges currently facing the sector, including high construction costs, increased borrowing costs and the need to address building safety issues.
“The fact remains that London is still recovering from the disastrous inheritance from the last Government, which scrapped housing targets and brought housebuilding to its knees through a combination of underinvestment, policy uncertainty and indifference.
“The Mayor is determined to build the genuinely affordable homes that London needs and is already working hand-in-hand with the new pro-home building Government to ensure London’s affordable housing delivery target is met, helping to build a fairer London for all.”
