Affordable action- at last! - Bates

11.02.07am UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 4th Jun 2008

As the Government announces money for a collection of measures to address the crisis in affordable housing, Mick Bates Assembly Member for Mongtomeryshire has welcomed the news with a cautionary note: "Politicians throughout rural Wales have lobbied the Government in Wales to take decisive action to address the lack of affordable housing - it has taken a charity to report before the Minister has finally taken notice!"

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation Commission on Rural Housing in Wales says that in light of house price increases of more than 150% in Wales' nine predominantly rural local authorities between 2000 and 2007, the average house price to income ratio now exceeds five-to-one, meaning serious problems of affordability, sharp increases in homelessness and a limited housing supply.

With a net annual shortfall of 3,800 properties in rural Wales, 25,000 households on local authority housing registers and a 309% increase in homelessness between 1978 and 2005, the commission claims current and projected affordable housing supply will not be sufficient, and a "seismic" upward shift in provision is required to meet the need.

Today's report says: "The sustainability of rural Wales depends as much on the social and economic wellbeing of its communities as it does on the protection and enhancement of its environment.

"There is no doubt that rural Wales is threatened by the lack of affordable housing. There must be swift action backed up by sound policy and sufficient money from the Welsh Assembly Government before rural communities have lost their cultural heritage forever" Says Mick

"I have been telling the Government for the past eight years that it needs to address these issues and county councils and the Government hold huge amounts of land which could be released for affordable housing. I have worked hard to support the efforts of Land for People, a Community Land Trust based in Welshpool. It may be that Land Trusts hold the key to unlocking a supply of affordable housing to address local needs. It is only through collaboration between land owners, local councils and the building industry that we will deal with the problem of providing adequate affordable housing to people in rural areas.

I welcome the action by Government today - albeit a little too late"

Among the Commission's recommendations are:

The better use of existing housing stock in bringing 18,000 vacant homes in rural Wales back into use;

the creation of a database of public land that could be used for affordable housing;

the tailoring of new national housing policies to rural conditions and needs;

the development by WAG of a more detailed and coordinated collation of evidence to plug gaps in its current methods of addressing housing needs; and

more effective use of planning powers by local authorities to deliver affordable housing, and a better relationship between authorities and private developers.