London mayor Sadiq Khan has outlined his new housing crack squad, aimed at kick-starting the capital’s house building sector.
Earlier this week Khan unveiled the “Homes for Londoners” board that will oversee house building and aim to boost the delivery of new and affordable homes.
The team comprises Khan’s housing deputy James Murray, four borough leaders to be nominated by London councils, TfL commissioner Mike Brown, the Greater London Authority’s executive director housing and land David Lunts, chair of the G15 group of leading housing associations David Montague and two “members of the residential property sector” who have yet to be named. Khan himself will chair the board, which will meet quarterly.
Khan has also announced that he’s assembling an in-house “viability expert team” who will scrutinise the financial details that lie behind how much affordable housing new developments actually include.
Their role will include making planning decisions faster and more consistent, as well as making sure new housing is “affordable”.
Khan said: “I am determined that Londoners get the same opportunities this great city gave me. That is why I am setting up my Homes for Londoners team to speed up home building and to move towards 50% of new homes in London being genuinely affordable to rent and buy.”
The unveiling of the team also comes the same week that the mayor ordered Transport for London to sell off surplus land to property developers at below market value to help ease the housing crisis.
The mayor instructed transport chiefs to dispose of an unused site at Kidbrooke in Greenwich at a “financially disadvantageous” price where 400 new homes will be built.
