More shops can be converted into homes and expansions can be facilitated by reviewing the building codes Politics news

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The settlement department wants to make it easier to “build up and out, with new extensions and loft conversions.”

Sunday, July 23, 2023 03:42, United Kingdom

Takeaways and bookmakers could be converted into homes more easily as the government launches a review of additions, conversions and renovations.

In the proposals, which will be officially announced Monday, new liberties for expanding existing homes will also be outlined.

The idea is to make it easier to “build up and out, with new extensions and loft conversions,” said the Settlement Department.

There will be “new flexibility to convert shops, takeaways and betting shops into homes”, while rules for commercial building and warehouse expansions will be “relaxed” to “better make use of unmanufactured fields”.

He suggests cutting red tape to “enable barn conversions and repurpose farm buildings rather than build in the countryside.”

The settlement minister, Michael Gove, said new homes must be “the right type and targeted at the right places”.

He added that they should also be built in “inland cities so that we can protect our countryside”.

He said better use should be made of existing buildings so as not to “gather dust” on empty shops and offices.

Read more: Median asking rent hits record high for homes Submerged development provides insight into the housing crisis

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Shadow Settlement Minister Lisa Nandy criticized the proposals, describing the review as “a drop in the ocean compared to what would be needed to fix the housing crisis”.

She added: “We don’t need any more reviews or press releases, we need bold action to build Britain.

“That is why Labor has put in place plans to reform the planning system to build the homes we need.

“We will restore housing targets, reform mandatory purchase rules, and make the hard choices to support builders, not blockers.”

The workers also promised to prevent foreign buyers from “purchasing large areas of new off-plan housing projects”.

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