BPF Westminster Update

The past few weeks have seen a blizzard of activity for the built environment when it comes to Government policy. We have seen the launch of the Warm Homes Plan which, while it gave certainty for the domestic PRS, was deafeningly silent on commercial real estate, leaving property owners none the wiser about the regulatory roadmap.

We saw the announcement of the draft Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill, which took the middle option of capping ground rents at £250 and pashing them out in 40 years, which will almost certainly have adverse knock-on effects for pensions and wider real estate investment.

"Across all of this activity runs the key issue for the sector like an inverse golden thread – viability, or more specifically, the lack thereof."

We also have the promise of the Housing Strategy in ‘the coming weeks’ – almost a year after it was first promised. Finally, the English Devolution Bill continues its Lords Committee stage, which will look at the proposed ban on Upward Only rent Reviews in the coming weeks. And all that is before we get the various business rates, planning and other consultations to which the BPF is working up responses.

With all this legislative activity, it’s important not to overlook the longer term, less-immediate-but-possibly-more-rewarding job of relationship building.

This week we held a parliamentary reception for our members involved in residential development across the various living sectors (affordable housing, Build-to-Rent, Purpose Built Student Accommodation and later living), to which a number of MPs and staffers came, and we met with Labour Together, a key think tank of the Starmer Government (I’m assuming it still is Starmer’s Government by the time you read this). 

Across all of this activity runs the key issue for the sector like an inverse golden thread – viability, or more specifically, the lack thereof.

It simply isn’t viable to commence development, whether commercial or residential, across many parts of the UK. Planning and the Building Safety Regulator remain an issue – often more capacity than policy – which is why we continue to call for 3,000 extra planners, not 300.

Supply chain and debt finance costs are still big headwinds, and the lack of demand for new homes reduces the desire to build even if development is financially viable on paper.

I’m hoping that 2026 is the year where this viability challenge turns a corner – planning reforms will bed in, the industry gets familiar with the re-shaped world of local government, finance costs ease up, and deals find a way to be done.

However it pans out, we will continue to press home to decision-makers the role that the industry can play - and is playing already in many places – is hitting Government ambitions for growth, renewal, and housing delivery.