Mayor of London calls for investment in affordable homes

The Mayor of London has called for more investment in housebuilding.

New research, commissioned by City Hall, London Councils, Trust for London and the G15, has highlighted the impact improving housing affordability could have on London’s productivity and the government’s growth agenda.

The research shows that a one per cent increase in housing affordability in London could yield a boost of £7.3 billion in economic output over a decade.

The Mayor has previously argued that more affordable housing would make it easier for London’s businesses to attract and retain workers, reduce homelessness and the reliance on temporary accommodation and make it possible for households and businesses to invest in more productive areas of the economy.

In a keynote speech at the Centre for London’s annual conference, Sadiq Khan outlined his commitment to building 40,000 new council homes by 2030.

Khan said: "A lack of affordable homes is having a profound and devastating effect in every corner of our capital, impacting every part of our progress. It’s creating inter-generational inequality like we’ve never seen before. It’s shattering one of the bedrock principles Britain was built on: that if you work hard, you get ahead. And it’s having far-reaching implications for the demographics of our country and our capital.

“Ensuring everyone can have a place to call home goes to the very heart of why I got into politics in the first place: to help people from all backgrounds, races and religions to get the same shot at reaching their potential that London gave me and my family.  

“The case for more housing is clearly economic and moral, vital and irrefutable. Fixing the housing crisis is not going to be easy, but it’s essential. Which is why, as Mayor, I’ll continue to fight for a response that equals the scale of the challenge. This crisis was decades in the making. But brick by brick, we can, and we must solve it - because the future of London rests on it.”

Cllr Claire Holland, chair of London Councils, said: “The chronic shortage of affordable housing in the capital is driving up homelessness and putting the brakes on London’s economic growth.

“Astronomical housing costs absorb a huge proportion of Londoners’ income, make it harder for businesses to recruit, and are a clear drag on productivity.

“As this important new research reveals, improving housing affordability in London would bring significant economic benefits, as well as helping those Londoners most impacted by the housing crisis. This is the latest evidence of why increased investment in affordable housing is so crucial. Tackling London’s housing pressures will boost productivity and help generate the economic growth we all want to see.”