John Healey MP, Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Minister for Housing and Planning, commenting on the release of a new evaluation of the Help to Buy equity loan programme, said:

“While it is good news that Help to Buy has provided a modest boost to the housing market, periodic flurries of short-term Ministerial announcements do not add up to a serious plan to get to grips with England’s housing costs crisis.” 

“The number of young people owning their own home has been in freefall since 2010, and housebuilding has remained weak.

“This research confirms that the average Help to Buy applicant earns almost £50,000. Meanwhile home-ownership is increasingly out of reach for young people on low and middle incomes.

“It will be the next Labour government’s housing priority to reverse this decline, which is why I’ve commissioned the independent Redfern Review to shine a light on the crisis in home-ownership.”