After Angela Rayner resigned late last week, there was one question on everyone’s mind: Who would take over? The answer comes in the form of Steve Reed, the former environment secretary who has taken up the mantle with a clear message: “Build, baby build”.
For the social housing sector however, that leaves the true question unanswered: build what? Rayner was a devout advocate for social housing, and the sector was at the heart of her messaging. For Steve Reed, whether social housing is as high of a priority remains to be seen. Of course, after the wealth of support for the sector announced at the last spending review, abandoning these efforts would be a radical and (many would say) miscalculated move, as the lack of social housing is a key catalyst for the housing crisis that now falls to Reed to be solved.
Reed made his political debut in 1998, and his first major position came in as the leader of Lambeth Council in 2006. At the beginning of his tenure, Lambeth was rated as London’s worst-rated borough, a reputation that Reed succeeding in repairing during his time at the council. Throughout his political career he held a number of senior positions at local level, before beginning his parliamentary career in 2012.
The MP for Streatham and Croydon North has taken to the office with visible optimism. Despite increasing skepticism, the new Housing Secretary has said the government is “absolutely committed” to getting 1.5 million new homes built in England by 2029. Regardless of the likelihood of hitting these sky-high ambitions, Reed’s optimism is at least an indicator that housing is still top of the agenda.
However, that brings in another major change left in Rayner’s wake: Reed has not taken over from Rayner in both regards. David Lammy has instead taken up the mantle of Deputy PM, separating housing from the penultimate seat in office. Whether this will affect housing’s front row seat for this government will be decided by Reed’s impact over the coming years (provided he keeps a sharp eye on his taxes).
Speaking during a visit to a housing development near Houghton Regis in Bedfordshire, Reed said he was going to come up with an “acceleration package” that would get planning applications approved more quickly and “spades in the ground”.
He added: “I don’t want the developers dragging their feet. They don’t want to drag their feet – it’s their business.
“They make money from going ahead with construction. I’m going to work in partnership with the developers but there will be sanctions if the building doesn’t go ahead at pace and at scale.”
Although much remains to be seen about the mark Reed will leave on the role, we can look to historic comments as an idea of his possible intentions. He was a stark supporter of the renters rights bill, and has been an outspoken critic of housebuilders who he accused of “land banking”. If these comments are to be anything to go from, it seems he will be unafraid to crack the whip in his endeavors to get Britain building.
