Meeting Housing Need

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Climate Change – in the Senedd at 2:19 pm on 30 March 2022.

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Photo of Lee Waters Lee Waters Labour 2:19, 30 March 2022

Well, Mabon ap Gwynfor makes a number of fair points there, and he makes two essential criticisms that the social housing system has not kept up with demand for many decades, which is correct, and that the private sector housing is providing too many of the same types of houses and not catering to the range of needs, such as bungalows, and there's a complex set of problems beneath both of those issues.

We are addressing the first with a very ambitious stretch target of 20,000 low-carbon social homes, which will make a significant difference, and there's progress being made this year in Gwynedd. I'm pleased to see seven housing schemes being funded for social rent, which has the potential to provide 88 homes in the coming years, which will make some difference in those communities. In terms of the broader critique of the way the market can provide a mono approach to housing, a large-volume approach, and not the variety that an ageing population requires, then that does require further disruption to the market model. And we are, as he knows, through our co-operation agreement, trialling a range of different approaches, as well as our modern methods of construction suite of reforms, to encourage well-designed and a greater diversity of houses to replenish the housing stock.

But, ultimately, this is market failure, and we do need, through our foundational economy projects, working with registered social landlords, to stimulate local supply chains and get local small and medium-sized enterprise builders to step back into the housing market rather than doing extensions and garages, which they primarily focus on at the moment because it provides a reliable and quick return. We do need to have a different approach from the market to meet the need he rightly addresses.