Keir Starmer’s authorities ‘will give councils extra powers to grab land and pay homeowners much less’ in ‘bulldozer blitz’ bid to construct 1.5m new houses

Keir Starmer‘s government is set to give local authorities more powers to seize land and pay the owners less in a so-called ‘bulldozer blitz’ to build 1.5million new homes. 

The Times reports that local authorities will be given the power to take control of brownfield land without handing over ‘excessive’ amounts of money in a bid to grow Britain’s housing stock. 

Currently, government bodies have to pay ‘hope values’ when they issue compulsory purchase orders, which reflect beliefs on what the land would be worth with the requisite planning permission. 

These are said to sometimes significantly drive up prices, leading to major delays as owners haggle over values. 

Reforms introduced earlier this year allowed councils to apply for permission to use compulsory purchase orders without hope values. 

But these new reforms would allow for councils to do this without needing to consult the government, and would likely include urban sites with potential for housing and land allocated for homes by local plans but yet to be developed. 

Matthew Pennycook, the housing minister, told the newspaper the reforms ‘will make the process faster and more efficient, enabling more land value to be captured and then invested in schemes for public benefit’. 

A government spokesperson said that in a consultation on the changes there was ‘an appetite amongst some town and community councils for a more proactive approach’ to compulsory purchase. 

‘The government is concerned there is a significant amount of suitable land available for housing which is currently lying vacant or underutilised and not coming forward for development,’ they added. 

Earlier this month, Sir Keir said he would prioritise ‘human beings wanting to have a house’ over the environment. 

Asked on a visit to a construction site in Cambridgeshire whether environmental concerns would stand in the way of building, he said: ‘The starting point is local plans, and that’s really important for councils to develop the plan according to the target, taking into account local need and working with developers.

‘But are we going to push it through if those plans don’t work? Yes we absolutely are.

‘Are we going to push away the planning rules and make them clearer, as we have done today, get away the blockers that are stopping the houses being built? Yes, we are absolutely intent.

‘For years, we have had not enough houses being built. That means that individuals and families don’t have the security that they want.

‘We are determined to break through that, to do what’s necessary.

‘Of course we want to get the balance right with nature and the environment, but if it comes to a human being wanting to have a house for them and their family, that has to be the top priority.’

But defiant Brits have launched a furious defence against Labour’s ‘war on rural England‘.

Cornwall councillor Jenny Cruse said Labour’s proposed target was ‘undemocratic’, arguing the priority should be bringing 2,700 empty homes back into use before building new homes on unspoiled land.

She said: ‘Angela Rayner is mad if she thinks this will work, she hasn’t got a clue. What they are proposing isn’t democratic, it doesn’t align with our local plan.

‘I can’t believe how worried and stressed people are about this, we are being totally disregarded.

‘People really care about our area but I don’t think Angela Rayner even knows where Cornwall is.

‘They are saying to us it doesn’t matter what local communities think, we are going to make the decision anyway and people don’t matter.

‘This is a Marxist plot and I can’t believe we have sleepwalked into this. It’s not about being a NIMBY, it’s that everything they are doing is flying in the face of democracy.’