It is vital that some of the words from Theresa May at the Conservative Party conference are not drowned out by the frenzy currently surrounding her colleagues such as Grant Shapps as they attempt to determine who will be the next leader and when they will take over. The risk is that when she leaves No 10 that her promises will be packed away into the tea chest along with her possessions.

“The effects of the financial crisis – nearly a decade of low growth, stagnating wages and pay restraint – linger. The boom in the housing market means that while some have done very well, for many the chance of getting onto the housing ladder has become a distant dream”

Her reference to a boom is the opposite of how most people would describe the housing situation. We have seen a near stagnation of house building which dropped to an all-time low of around 105,000 new homes in 2010 following the economic crash. Ignoring the Second World War, this figure is lower than any period since 1924. Add to this the impact of investors who are now willing to buy housing and leave it empty for decades and what we are facing is a catastrophic situation. House building hit an all-time high of 350,000 in the late 1960’s and then gradually declined with peaks at 270,000 in the mid 1970’s, 200,000 in the late 1980’s and 175,000 in 2007.

“Just over a decade ago, 59% of 25-34 year olds owned their own home. Today it is just 38%. I will dedicate my premiership to fixing this problem – to restoring hope. To renewing the British Dream for a new generation of people. And that means fixing our broken housing market. For 30 or 40 years we simply haven’t built enough homes. As a result, prices have risen so much that the average home now costs almost 8 times average earnings. And that’s been a disaster for young people in particular. We have begun to put this right. The number of new homes being delivered each year has increased significantly since 2010. But the election result showed us that this is not nearly enough.”

Mrs May is at best exaggerating to make a point. There was a sharp drop from the peak in 2007 to the 2010 figure, and indeed this has recovered to a certain degree, the latest numbers suggest 140,000 homes a year are now being built. However we are still a huge distance away from what is needed if housing is to return to an affordable level for all people.  In 2004 Kate Barker, an economist wrote a report which suggested that 179,000 new homes were needed each year, a figure which was revised upwards to 220,000 a decade later when her report was reviewed. Yet in all of that time, we have never even hit the lower of the two figures, so our challenge is huge and now represents around 1.5m homes, which would take 10 years to build at current rates.

“And today, I can announce that we will invest an additional £2 billion in affordable housing…. So whether you’re trying to buy your own home, renting privately and looking for more security, or have been waiting for years on a council list, help is on the way. It won’t be quick or easy, but as Prime Minister I am going to make it my mission to solve this problem. I will take personal charge of the government’s response, and make the British Dream a reality by reigniting home ownership in Britain once again. And let me say one more thing. I want to send the clearest possible message to our house builders. We, the government, will make sure the land is available. We’ll make sure our young people have the skills you need. In return, you must do your duty to Britain and build the homes our country needs.”

As I have written previously, this Government has so far made a complete mess of the apprenticeship system which is at the heart of their proposals to train young people in areas such as housebuilding. This needs putting right as a matter of high priority. If Mrs May is serious about making land available, then this will require persuading many people across the nation that new homes are essential to society as a whole so that we can attempt to address Nimbyism. One of the big issues that created resistance to the proponents of Kate Barkers first report was that new homes need suitable infrastructure. Many of those who raised these objections at that time were from the Conservative Party. Let us hope that this Government has learnt those lessons from its own members and ensures that public services are planned to be delivered along with these homes.