Derbyshire Councils Declare Government’s Housing Targets “Impossible”

Several local authorities in Derbyshire have communicated to the government that its primary initiative, aiming to construct 1.5 million new residences across England within the coming five-year period, is “impossible” to accomplish. These local authorities throughout the county expressed reservations regarding the proposal during a consultation process conducted by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s housing department earlier in the current year. The BBC acquired these responses via Freedom of Information requests, revealing a potential conflict between the local councils and their governing party regarding a key policy objective. The government stated that the implementation of compulsory housing targets was a direct response to what it termed the “worst housing crisis in living memory”. Participating local authorities in the consultation affirmed their support for the general concept of increasing housing construction. However, according to responses reviewed by the BBC, six Labour-administered councils, the Conservative-governed Derbyshire County Council, and the Liberal Democrat-led coalition at Derbyshire Dales District Council, all expressed skepticism about their ability to meet these targets. Amber Valley Borough Council, under Labour administration since 2023, indicated its agreement with the necessity of constructing additional homes and enhancing affordability. The council further noted that its own objective, outlined in its Local Plan, was to deliver 7,716 homes across an 18-year timeframe. It also stated that provisions were being made for “unmet needs” originating from Derby city, accounting for 1,320 homes. Nevertheless, it pointed out that the newly introduced targets would necessitate the construction of 682 homes annually, in contrast to its existing yearly objective of 428 homes. In their submission, they stated: “The industry has not achieved that level of delivery in the last 15 years.” They further added: “We are concerned that this will lead to planning by appeal which erodes confidence in the plan-led system.” Chesterfield Borough Council, also under Labour leadership, affirmed it was “keen to play its role” in boosting housing delivery, but cautioned that this “cannot be achieved solely through identifying more land and then relying on the private sector to deliver them”. The Conservative-administered Derbyshire County Council indicated that its housing requirements would double from 2,300 to 4,600 units annually. The local authority commented: “This will be extremely challenging, if not impossible.” Derbyshire Dales District Council further stated that the methodology employed to establish these targets constituted a “crude mechanism” for evaluating an area’s future requirements, suggesting that a “population-based forecast” would be more appropriate. A representative from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government remarked: “This is the worst housing crisis in living memory, and in order to fix this we need to build 1.5 million homes.“ The spokesperson continued: “That’s why we have introduced mandatory housing targets for councils and laid out clear plans to support their delivery, including by changing planning rules to allow homes to be built on grey belt land and recruiting 300 additional planning officers.”