Britain’s new Housing Secretary has pledged to speed up housebuilding as Labour ramps up efforts to deal with the housing disaster.
Steve Reed, who stepped into the function after Angela Rayner’s resignation, has adopted her well-known slogan, “construct, child construct,” to sign continuity and urgency.
He instructed officers he would “pull each lever” construct houses and ship Labour’s bold goal of 1.5 million homes this parliament.
Related guarantees for homebuilding
It’s time to BUILD, BABY, BUILD🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/OQnolSf6dJSeptember 8, 2025
Steve Reed’s appointment indicators a shift in type and emphasis in Labour’s method to homebuilding.
He has adopted the acquainted mantra “construct, child construct,” first popularised by Angela Rayner, to underline his dedication to accelerating housebuilding.
Reed is ready to deliver collectively builders and housebuilders this week to debate the following part of planning reform, with a concentrate on the 1.4 million houses that have already got planning permission however have but to be constructed.
A frightening problem for Labour
Regardless of Reed’s bold messaging, the dimensions of the duty stays formidable.
The UK’s homebuilding sector is dealing with its longest droop for the reason that COVID-19 pandemic, threatening the Authorities’s goal of 1.5 million new houses by 2029.
Trade consultants warn {that a} scarcity of expert staff compounds the issue: an estimated 140,000 extra development staff are wanted over the following 5 years, with one other 61,000 required yearly to fulfill housing targets.
Enterprise confidence is low, with solely 34% of companies anticipating progress within the coming yr – the bottom degree since December 2022. With out substantial intervention to stimulate exercise and handle workforce shortages, Labour’s bold housing objectives stay at critical threat.
Political urgency after Rayner’s departure
Reed takes up the housing temporary within the wake of Angela Rayner’s sudden resignation, which rattled the Labour entrance bench and intensified stress on Sir Keir Starmer’s Authorities.
Senior officers level to Reed’s document as Surroundings Secretary – the place he impressed with decisive reforms – as a cause for optimism.
A supply on the housing division stated: “The brand new Housing Secretary will go away no stone unturned to construct the houses Britain desperately wants. Let’s get Britain constructing.”
