25 October 2002
Senior figures at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister this week said they were 'open to any suggestions' that would improve the supply of affordable housing.
Appearing before the Commons' urban affairs select committee on October 21, Mike Gahagan, director of housing at the ODPM, told the committee that the government's agenda 'had changed and widened'. This was after the July announcement by Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott that the government would target new areas for house building under a £1.4bn scheme.
Prescott also announced that local authorities' planning schemes would be 'revamped' and that councils would have to meet strict targets for new homes. He estimated that 200,000 new houses would result from projects funded by the new cash, but has not said how it will be spent.
When pressed, Gahagan said: 'We're open to any suggestions on new schemes, but there's always a public funding element involved. The figures don't stack up otherwise.'
PFoct2002
