UK housing minister’s financial lifeline addresses syptoms but is no cure for stalled demolition
Here at Demolition News Towers, we have long believed that politicians operate in a vacuum, basking in expense account, secretary humping luxury, isolated from the needs and challenges of people forced to live in the real world. But the latest news to emerge from UK housing minister Grant Shapps is so far removed from any semblance of reality that it’s akin to apologising for the mess while continuing to beat someone over the head with a baseball bat.
Shapps today announced a £30 million lifeline to families trapped in streets abandoned due to stalled large scale housing demolition schemes.
The Housing Market Renewal programme, launched in 2002, created large scale targets for demolition clearance and new build homes. Over time many of these schemes did not secure the public or private investment necessary, which Ministers argue resulted in blighted areas where large scale demolition and clearance projects were stopped in their tracks, often leaving isolated residents living in just a few homes in otherwise derelict areas.
The previous Government’s Housing Market Renewal programme created large scale targets for demolition clearance and new build homes. Over time many of these schemes did not secure the public or private investment necessary resulting in blighted areas where large scale demolition and clearance projects have been stopped in their tracks often leaving isolated residents living in just a few homes in otherwise derelict areas.
So, rather than addressing the planning problems that have pushed these demolition and construction initiatives onto the back-burner or, better still, freeing up some money to see these projects through to completion, the eminently wise Mr Shapps has instead gathered together £30 million of taxpayers money to help bail out families that find themselves living in ghost towns caused by failed demolition programmes.
This is a drum that we’ve beaten so long that it’s in danger of breaking. But, just in case Mr Shapps does visit the real world, here’s a quick reminder of UK construction economics for him.
For every £1.00 spent on construction in the UK, £2.84 is generated for the UK economy.
So rather than taking taxpayers’ money to bail out taxpayers trapped by the failure of government to plan, instigate and deliver a stalled demolition programme, how about investing that £30 million in actually bringing that programme to fruition, creating work for demolition and construction companies, creating jobs, and topping up UK PLC’s depleted coffers.
