Letter: The Cap on Borrowing for Housing Is Only One of Our Problems

Published on: 6 Oct, 2018
Updated on: 6 Oct, 2018

From Gordon Bridger

hon alderman and former Mayor of Guildford

In response to: The Dragon Says: So the Housing Numbers Were Wrong

A thoughtful article which should encourage more debate.

In my view, our main economic problem in Britain is that like too many Western countries we are consuming more than we produce and selling off assets to foreign investors to maintain this level of consumption (we should be wary of Chinese expansionism).

Devaluation the pound is the sensible long-term solution. Meanwhile, the government should be doing everything possible to encourage high tech enterprises.

But in Britain, and in many western countries, the high costs of housing is a major factor in pushing up labour costs and making us less competitive. A 4.5% unemployment rate is an impressive achievement, and we now face a serious labour shortage.

The Government targets for housing are based on nonsensical estimates of housing costs not employment needs.

They should have required labour surveys to identify where the demand was greatest and allow communities to decide whether they wished to meet these needs.

In Guildford, we have an attractive environment and a very high standard of living which means that for many in Guildford Borough more development is not a priority. This seems to be short-sighted but if that is the democratic wish – which means that in a highly competitive world we would be bypassed, so be it.

It should be local authorities who should be allowed to determine how important employment and social needs are and thus the number of houses they should build.

Unfortunately, the British system of “planning” is highly centralised, and local authorities expenditure and indeed income controlled with near Soviet tightness – this is not how an efficient market enterprise economy should be run.

The recent agreement to allow local authorities to build social housing is a welcome step to loosening these controls but as long as local authorities have very tight caps on their tax-raising powers economic development will be hampered.

Our Guildford Local Plan still does not recognize the importance of encouraging high tech skilled labour and finding housing for their needs but stick to a low skilled retail sector which is being devastated by new methods of shopping.