MIPIM | Rowley: ‘It does not matter what number minister I am’
Lee Rowley is the 15th different housing minister since the Conservatives came to power in 2010, a fact he says is irrelevant when it comes to the UK’s record on delivery.
Speaking to Place North West at MIPIM, Rowley said the message from the Tories on housing has been consistent over the last decade and a half, despite the revolving door of ministers.
“It doesn’t matter what number [housing minister] I am,” he said. “It matters that we’re here [at MIPIM] making the case that the UK is an attractive place to come to progress.
“I think we should focus less on who does it and more on what people are saying. Throughout the last 14 years, there has been a consistent message, which is that the UK wants inward investment that UK needs to build more.”
Property professionals have bemoaned a lack of stability in recent years having seen a large number of housing ministers come and go. This is Rowley’s second stint – he held the post for a little under two months between September and October 2022 during Liz Truss’s ill-fated tenure.
Rowley said being at MIPIM has reaffirmed his belief that the world sees the UK as a viable investment proposition.
“It has been super interesting to have the opportunity to talk about what the UK has to offer, and the opportunities that we have in the years to come,” he said.
He said there is “brilliant work” being done across the North West and other regions that could pave the way for international investment.
“The way that we transform our cities and our communities over the long term is by getting people who want to invest in us to do that in the right places.
“Then we can see the transformation and regeneration that comes from it. And we’ve seen that in the North West in Manchester and Liverpool. We want more of that.”
It is a truth almost universally acknowledged that the UK, like many other nations, is in the midst of a housing crisis. Government has been criticised for a lack of action in addressing this and more recently has been accused of siding with NIMBYs over issues like the Green Belt.
Rowley defended his party’s track record on homes, saying that support is there to boost delivery.
“We have the best part of £11bn already going into housing through the Affordable Housing Programme, and we have got significant additional regeneration programmes like the brownfield infrastructure planning programme,” he said.
“The government is doing an awful lot to try and support. We always recognise there is more that we can do and we’re trying to do that.”
If polls are to be believed, Rowley could be out of a job once the general election comes around. Time is almost up for the Conservatives to make a meaningful dent in the housing crisis and soon the issue will be someone else’s.
Change will be welcomed by many. However, the housing industry has learned over the last 14 years that fresh faces do not always result in different outcomes.
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