Successful new towns ‘almost impossible’ to deliver, Lords says

The House of Lords Built Environment Committee is pessimistic about the government’s ability to build a series of new large settlements due to a lack of clarity on delivery strategies and the country’s constrained planning system.

A report published by the committee today sets out its view on what the new towns programme should achieve for residents, including driving inclusive growth, reducing spatial inequalities, and acting as exemplars of modern, healthy, sustainable living.

The report criticises the government for its focus on the quantity of housing units over quality of place. The new towns programme forms part of Labour’s target of delivering 1.5m new homes before the end of the parliament, an ambition that is widely considered unattainable.

“The continued emphasis on delivering housing units is not enough to give the programme meaning and create thriving and successful communities,” it says.

Constrained local planning capacity means that delivery will be an “enormous challenge”, according to the report, which describes planning as a “critical risk” to the success of the programme.

“Delivering high quality, sustainable, and thriving communities of the kind the committee calls for in this report will be almost impossible under such constraints,” it adds.

A few days ago, the 12-strong shortlist of potential new town locations was whittled down to five. The controversial Adlington proposal, the only standalone settlement put forward, was among those culled.

With the final decision on new towns locations expected in summer, the Lords report calls on the government to think more about how the projects might come forward.

The committee has repeated earlier calls for the government to set up a “single, autonomous central body, reporting to a dedicated cabinet-level minister, to coordinate departments, steward quality, and manage new town assets over the long term”.

Lord Gascoigne, chair of the Built Environment Committee, said: “The new towns programme needs a compelling national vision. There has to be strong national leadership, clear coordination across government, all supporting delivery on the ground at the local level to create sustainable, flourishing communities for the decades ahead.

“The purpose of the new towns programme must go beyond just meeting housing numbers. People need to be able to thrive, rather than simply survive, in these new towns; that means that these new towns have to be accessible, age-friendly and safe.

He added: “Now that the government has set out the locations of seven new towns that will be considered and confirmed the launch of the National Housing Bank, it needs to tell the country how it is going to deliver these new places.”