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Lords committee launches inquiry into feasibility of new towns scheme
Cristina Lago Deputy Editor
(Image: Jez (null) via Dreamstime.com)
The House of Lords Built Environment Committee has launched an inquiry into new towns and expanded settlements.
Using short, targeted modules, the inquiry aims to address whether new towns and expanded settlements are an effective means of delivering housing and, if so, how to ensure they are successful.
The government wants to build up to 12 new towns by the next election, each with capacity for at least 10,000 homes and necessary infrastructure.
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More than 100 potential locations in England have already been identified and submitted to the New Towns Taskforce. Most of these are urban expansions in London, the South East and the South West.
The first of the inquiry’s modules will explore the practical considerations of delivering new towns by asking: ‘Is the construction of new towns and expanded settlements practicable and achievable?’
If the answer to this question is ‘yes’, subsequent modules will explore the ‘how’, looking at infrastructure enablement, social infrastructure, housing delivery and creation of communities.
Lord Gascoigne, chair of the House of Lords Built Environment Committee, said: “The UK has a chronic housing shortage and, like its predecessors, the new government has very ambitious housebuilding targets to address these shortages.
“Our initial inquiry will focus on practical delivery and seek to understand the legal, political and economic channels through which new and expanded settlements can be successfully delivered.
“To inform our work we want to hear from as broad a range of people as possible.”
The January/February 2026 issue of Construction Management magazine is now available to read in digital format.
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