Newington's Pavitar Mann provides a round-up of our recent roundtable discussion

Newington was delighted to welcome Rt Hon John Healey MP, the Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, to a private roundtable held this month.

John, former Minister for Housing, as well as Minister for Local Government, under Gordon Brown’s premiership, has built up a reputation as a knowledgeable and committed housing advocate. Condemning the Housing White Paper as “feeble beyond belief” in Parliament, he stated that he had expected a “great deal more innovation – a great deal more full stop”. John stated to the room that the most bold thing contained within the White Paper was the title itself – the first ever acknowledgement by any government that the housing market is “broken”.

Following the publication of the long-awaited Housing White Paper, the roundtable was a unique opportunity to debate the Government’s housing policy. The roundtable was attended by representatives from across the housing sector, including planners, investors, developers and politicians.

Attendees discussed their views on the White Paper, explored current problems experienced within the planning system and debated how encouraging innovation in the sector could reform the housing market and boost the supply of new homes in England. The roundtable discussed support for first time buyers, the definition of affordable housing, a more systematic housing needs test with significant debate around the benefits and concerns around Neighbourhood Planning. With the Financial Times reporting this month that home ownership in England has fallen to its lowest level since 1985, the questions of how to help young people onto the housing ladder as well as raising security and standards for renters were also discussed.

The roundtable was chaired by Patrick Law, former Director of Corporate Affairs at Barratt, and marked the start of his tenure as an Associate at Newington.

With offices across the UK, Newington is well positioned to cover your business’ communications needs across local and national levels. Our political and community insight and intelligence means that we not only see where the conversation will go, but also how to influence its direction of travel. We use this understanding to help our clients develop proactive, strategic and well-planned campaigns. For more information on how Newington can help, please contact Pavitar Mann.