Keir Starmer has declared that Labour’s housing and infrastructure investment plans will be “transformational” for Britain. It’s a bold claim and one that, in principle, should be welcomed. After all, there is no doubt that decisive Government intervention is long overdue if we are to make any meaningful headway in solving the UK’s housing crisis.
However, as a mortgage broking firm working closely with homebuyers, landlords, and property investors daily, I can’t help but look beyond the headlines and ask: how realistic is this vision, and more importantly, how resilient is it?
With the Public Accounts Committee preparing to question Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner on 8 July regarding housing budget allocations and spending commitments, the timing couldn’t be more important for the Government to provide clarity.
Questions that deserve answers
The big question for me is how Labour intends to achieve these goals. We’ve heard ambitious pledges before, 1.5 million new homes over five years, new towns, brownfield development, and the prioritisation of critical infrastructure, but what we haven’t heard yet is a detailed roadmap.
Building infrastructure and housing at scale takes time. Planning processes are cumbersome, funding is finite, and skilled labour is in short supply. So, the committee would do well to press for details on timelines, execution plans, and crucially how Labour intends to insulate these initiatives from political volatility.
Because, as we’ve seen time and again, new administrations often unpick the work of their predecessors. So one of the most urgent questions for Angela Rayner is: How will Labour secure cross-party consensus and continuity on housing and infrastructure projects that are by nature long-term? The housing crisis doesn’t recognise electoral cycles. If these projects are truly going to be transformational, they must be protected from political change.
The missing piece: The private rental sector
Another area that continues to be overlooked in mainstream political discourse is the private rental sector (PRS). While increasing homeownership is a noble objective, the reality is that millions of people will still rely on rental accommodation, many of them for the long term.
Yet, successive policies have made being a landlord in the UK less attractive. Tax reforms, increased regulation, and a general sense of political hostility have driven many small landlords out of the market, and we’re seeing the results in reduced rental stock and rising rents.
So my second big question is this: What is the Government’s strategy for supporting and stabilising the PRS as part of the wider housing solution? Without a functioning rental market, we risk further imbalance in housing supply and affordability.
If Labour is serious about delivering more homes for families and individuals who need them, it must view landlords not as adversaries but as part of the solution. Encouraging institutional investment, revisiting punitive tax structures, and giving landlords greater confidence to stay in the sector will be essential.
Optimism, with a dose of caution
To be clear, Labour’s commitments are a positive step. After years of inertia, it is refreshing to see housing move up the political agenda. But transformation requires more than vision; it demands transparency, execution, and long-term political will.
As the 8 July select committee session approaches, the industry and the public deserve answers that go beyond rhetoric. How will the Government ensure these plans get off the ground and stay airborne, regardless of who’s in power five or ten years from now? And how will it ensure that all parts of the housing market, including the private rental sector, are fit for the future?
The answers to these questions will determine whether the word “transformational” is simply political theatre or the start of something truly game changing.
Hiten Ganatra is managing director of Visionary Finance
