Local first-time buyers given priority in housing market, Labour vows

  • Politics
Local first-time buyers are the focus of a Labour housing scheme to be unveiled by Ed Miliband today Credit: PA

Local first-time buyers are the focus of a Labour housing scheme to be unveiled by Ed Miliband today.

The party has committed to building at least 200,000 homes a year by 2020 if it wins power in 2015 and says that it will give councils powers to designate Housing Growth Areas (HGA) for new homes.

Under the scheme, local authorities would be allowed to reserve a proportion of the new homes for first-time buyers from the area, who would have priority access to properties for a period of two months.

As many as 50% of properties could be reserved for people who have lived or worked in an area for at least two years, it is believed.

Restrictions could be placed on HGA homes to prevent them being sold for buy-to-let rental or purchased as an investment and left empty.

The proposals are contained in an independent housing review carried out for Labour by Sir Michael Lyons.

Ed Miliband will unveil housing reforms in Milton Keynes today Credit: PA

The Labour leader, who is visiting Milton Keynes, is expected to say: "There has been a systematic failure to build the homes our country needs.

"Too much development land is held as a speculative investment when local people need homes. Too often the trickle of new developments that get completed are snapped up before people from the area can benefit, undermining support for much needed further development. And, for too many young families, the dream of home ownership is fading fast.

"Only Labour has a plan to build the homes that our country, our local communities and our families need."

The Home Builders Federation welcomed Labour's plans to increase housing supply.

However, Conservative Housing Minister Brandon Lewis accused Labour of "trying to pull the wool over people's eyes."

"They say they can meet their housing promises and not borrow a single penny extra to pay for it, but this just isn't credible," Mr Lewis said.

He added: "What's more, no one will take any lectures from Labour on house-building. Thanks to this Government's long-term economic plan, house-building in England is at its highest since 2007 and in the last 12 months, 230,000 homes received planning permission. By contrast, house building is falling in Labour-run Wales, thanks to their extra red tape and botched introduction of Help to Buy."