SOMERSET Council has criticised the government’s housebuilding targets, which it says are “not evidence-based” and will have “ramifications for infrastructure” across the county.  

In a statement released today (December 2), the council said new targets introduced by the Labour government “may not be based on a rational approach beyond that of wanting to be more ambitious than the previous figure.” 

“The government has not provided justification for the figure, so the Council is unable to form a view as to whether it is rational or not,” it added.  

“Evidence based decision-making is the core principle of plan making and the lack of evidence for the national housing figure is contrary to this approach.” 

READ MORE: Taunton and West Somerset planning roundup Monday November 25

Housebuilding is at the heart of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s plans to kickstart economic growth, one of his five core missions for government.  

In July, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner announced plans to overhaul Britain’s planning system in a bid to deliver Labour's promise of 1.5m new homes by 2029. 

These plans involved councils in England incorporating government-set housing targets into their long-term plans, something the previous Conservative government moved away from. 

The changes will mean councils overall will now have to plan for around 370,000 homes annually, instead of the current 305,000. 

In Somerset the target has gone up to 3,891 new homes from the previous figure of 2,669, a 46 per cent rise which the council has said will require more infrastructure. 

“The significant increase for Somerset of 46 per cent will have ramifications for all areas of infrastructure provision: schools, utilities, transport, primary health care, none of which could be delivered at the pace required and will require public funding in order to ensure that provision is made at the appropriate stage of the development – often infrastructure lags behind the delivery of homes,” Somerset Council said.  

“The Council urges the Government to work with housing needs experts to provide a justified figure.  

“The Council is also concerned that the market will not deliver this rate of housing building in Somerset nor across the country.” 

The council said that in Somerset over the last 14 years the market has delivered far below the proposed increased annual figure.  

“The only time that delivery has been at the levels required is when the public sector/housing associations have delivered affordable housing,” it added.