A ten point plan to improve housing supply in the UK

A brand new report from the Housing Forum included a ten point plan for dealing with the problems facing supply in the property market in the UK. The plan includes some dramatic changes to how planning is currently handled at every level by the Government. The aim is to "future proof" the sector in order to satisfy demand. As a leading company involved in creating residential architecture in London the plan captured our attention. The main focus of the ten point plan is to depoliticise the planning process whilst resolving issues such as inconsistency and unpredictability. Problems such as time delays, additional costs, and inefficiency would also be resolved.The ten points are:1. Depoliticise - create cross-party housing groups and remove elected members from the decision-making process to prevent politics becoming an obstacle to housing strategy.2. Appoint a Housing Minister - a dedicated individual to take responsibility for commissioning new homes on land in the public sector.3. Improve the power of local authorities - they should become leaders and be proactive in driving housing supply in their areas.4. Create a single strategy for the whole industry - this would align aims and goals whilst also boosting communication with the Government.5. Implement the Farmer's Review - this would modernise skills and boost technological use in the house-building sector.6. Improve how local authorities judge buyers - when land is sold for housing development buyers should be judged by factors such as speed of delivery and quality, ensuring value.7. Revise the planning system - Central and local governments should focus on increasing supply, including taking steps to support PRS and build for rent.8. Agree an investment plan - a ten year plan should be put in place detailing a long term, large scale investment.9. Give local authorities additional financial mechanisms - these would allow them to directly commission new homes.10. Establish a centre for excellence - this would improve procurement expertise throughout the whole sector.The plan would be interesting and could have a big impact on residential architecture in London and across the whole of the UK. We will be monitoring the situation closely to see if any action is taken regarding the proposals.