Michael Gove defends missed housing targets as he claims getting onto property ladder will be easier under Tories
20 June 2024, 08:26
Michael Gove has defended the Conservatives' record on housing, claiming that getting onto the property ladder would be easier if his party were re-elected.
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The Housing Secretary told LBC's Nick Ferrari at Breakfast: "Did we try everything we could? Yes. "Did we succeed a lot of the time? Yes. Were there some things that we didn't quite deliver? Absolutely."
The Tories promise to deliver 1.6 million homes and permanently abolish stamp duty for homes up to £425,000 for first-time buyers in their manifesto.
The Conservatives also say they will bring in a new Help to Buy scheme with 5% deposits to save first-time buyers up front costs.
But the government previously missed its target of building 300,000 new homes a year.
Read more: Why are neither of the major parties talking about housing during this General Election?
Michael Gove on how people are meant to afford a deposit for a house now
Mr Gove admitted this was true, but added: "Overall, we built in our time in government significantly more homes than Labour did. I think there was only one year when we were in power when we built fewer homes than Labour built in any year that they were in power."
Asked if his argument was that the Conservatives were bad, but not as bad as Labour, Mr Gove said this was a glass half-empty" approach.
He added: "Well, we're all fallen creatures in an imperfect world... but I would say in football terms, we have been the arsenal of housebuilding and Labour have been the QPR."
The Conservatives have claimed that by failing to back the plans in their manifesto, a Labour government would increase stamp duty for first-time buyers from next April.
The party claims that, assuming a similar number of transactions next year as in 2022/23, this would mean more than 200,000 buyers will see an average tax increase of £3,500 when they purchase their first home under Labour.
Watch Again: Nick Ferrari is joined by Levelling Up and Housing Secretary Michael Gove | 20/06/24
The Labour manifesto's only reference to stamp duty is that the party would use revenue from increasing stamp duty on purchases of residential property by non-UK residents by 1% to appoint 300 new planning officers.
The Tories' "plan for home-ownership" will, the party maintains, help hundreds of thousands on to the property ladder.
The package includes raising the thresholds for paying any stamp duty to £425,000 from £300,000 for first-time buyers and raising the thresholds for accessing stamp duty relief to £625,000 from £500,000 for first-time buyers.
It also pledges to reform EU "red tape" and "look at" creating a tax incentive for developers to build on brownfield sites that have laid dormant for years.
Nick Ferrari asks Michael Gove about the Tories' declining poll ratings
A Labour spokesman said: "This reeks of desperation from the Tories.
"Jeremy Hunt has admitted the Conservatives' tax cuts are completely unfunded, which will risk putting mortgages up again by £4,800.
"Over 14 years, the Tories have completely failed on housing, and homeownership has become a pipedream for most working families.
"Rishi Sunak has himself admitted it has become 'harder' to own a home under his government and no amount of baseless mudslinging can alter that fact.
"Labour will turn the page on this Conservative chaos.
"Our plans will get Britain building and help working families onto the housing ladder, with first dibs for first-time buyers and a new Freedom to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme."
