CHC reacts to Capital Investment announcement

Jane Hutt, Minister for Finance, has just announced an additional capital investment of £30m for housing due to ‘careful financial management from Welsh Government’.

The £30m package includes funding for affordable housing and other housing priorities such as an alternative approach to delivering housing adaptations and land for housing schemes.

Welcoming the announcement, Nick Bennett, Group Chief Executive of Community Housing Cymru, the membership body for housing associations in Wales, said:

''We are a sector that has repeatedly shown that we can deliver. In 2011/12 our members built nearly 2,000 new affordable homes, spent over £950m, 80% of which was retained in Wales and supported over 20,000 jobs. We are the only sector in Wales to lever in £1.5bn of private investment and this additional capital will not only help build more affordable homes, it will also help boost the Welsh economy and provide much needed job and training opportunities for local people.''

While they welcome the announcement, they are also warning that without further investment, the Welsh Government’s affordable housing target will not be met.

Tim Blanch, Chair of the CHC Group and Chief Executive of the Coastal Housing Group added: ‘New capital projects announced in England recently will mean that the Welsh Government will get a Barnett formula consequential of £224m for its capital budget. While Ed Balls, Labour Shadow Chancellor, has called for 100,000 new homes across the UK, the Welsh Government, now the only part of the UK ruled by Labour, must match these words and take bold action and invest this capital into affordable housing.''

For further information, please contact Edwina O’Hart on 07791898497 or Edwina-ohart@chcymru.org.uk