Thursday 16 October 2014

London Chamber of Commerce response to Lyons Housing Review

Commenting on the business publication of The Lyons Housing Review for the Labour Party, Chief Executive of London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Colin Stanbridge said: "This is a comprehensive report and we are pleased to finally see some detail on how a future Labour Government could potentially move to address the chronic undersupply of housing - at its most acute in the capital. We have long said is vital that policies are needed to liberate more land and empower more builders to deliver the houses Londoners need.

"We note Sir Michael has adopted the recommendation made by London Chamber of Commerce for local government to have 'use it or lose it' powers to curb 'landbanking' of prime brownfield sites that are not used within a set number of years.

"The emphasis placed on driving competition by removing the barriers to entry for small builders with the capacity to develop smaller sites more quickly, which we called for in our May 2014 report, Getting our house in order, is also welcome.

"One such intervention that could be made immediately is local authorities permitting small developers of sites under 50 units to defer payment of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) until the homes have gone to market, easing the barrier of large up-front cash demands".

ENDS

Media contact:
Sean McKee
T: +44 (0)20 7203 1897
M: +44 (0)7827 241528
E: smckee@londonchamber.co.uk

NOTES TO EDITOR:

1. London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) is the capital's largest and most representative business organisation, with members ranging in size from multi-national companies to SMEs and sole traders.
2. Colin Stanbridge is available for further comment and interview.
3. A full copy of Getting our house in order: The impact of housing undersupply on London businesses can be found here.