Lib Dem members defy leadership on housing target

Liberal Democrat members have defied the party leadership by voting to keep the party's housebuilding target for England.

Party bosses had wanted to shelve the 380,000 annual target, arguing it had failed to deliver necessary new homes.

But members backed a motion from younger activists to keep it at the party's conference in Bournemouth.

In an impassioned debate, the activists said ditching an overall target risked alienating younger voters.

A leaflet backing the motion warned members that dropping the target would hand Labour "a stick to beat us with" in marginal seats.

Referring to the party's notorious broken pledge on university funding during the coalition years, it urged: "Don't let housing become our next tuition fees".

The party has had a target to build 380,000 new homes a year in England across all sectors since it was adopted at its annual conference in 2021.

But the party leadership had proposed replacing this with "independently assessed" targets for local authorities, which are "appropriate for the specific areas' needs".

Under the plan, the party would instead pledge to build 150,000 social homes a year in England, with "binding" affordable housing targets for councils.

During a debate before the vote, the party's housing spokeswoman Helen Morgan said England-wide targets had "utterly failed to deliver the homes we need".

She added that the party needed a policy that "will actually deliver homes", adding the 380,000 pledge for all sectors - public and private - "will not do that".

However, members eventually backed an amendment suggested by the Young Liberals group, which said the target should be kept, to be translated into "achievable" local goals.

It added that keeping it would show "serious intent" from the party to "address the housing crisis".

The group's chair, Janey Little, told party members that housing had become unaffordable for many younger people and the target showed them that "we as Liberal Democrats are listening".

Former leader Tim Farron spoke against the successful amendment, adding the England-wide target was "vague and vacuous" and would prove an "electoral gift for the Tories" - to jeers from some in the conference hall.

The Lib Dems are hoping to target a swathe of Conservative-held seats at the next election across sections of southern and south-western England.

Currently, a government-set formula, based on population estimates, determines the housing targets that councils are meant to incorporate into their 15-year housebuilding plans.

Councils that fail to do so can have their power to block new developments curbed.

However, in the face of a backlash from Conservative MPs, the government has set out plans to water the targets down by specifying in planning guidance that they are only advisory.

This weekend, Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey denied opposing new housing in Tory-run areas, saying he was against "developer-led" schemes without proper amenities.

The government has a target to build 300,000 new homes in England by the mid-2020s - but MPs have warned it is on track to miss it.