Building 1.4 million homes on England’s brownfield land could inject £259 billion into the UK economy, create almost half a million jobs every year and transform the country’s housing crisis without building on the Green Belt, according to a major new independent report.
The research, commissioned by Dale Vince OBE and carried out by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), concludes that Britain already has enough previously developed land identified by local authorities to deliver a housing-led economic revival over the next decade.
Researchers estimate the programme would generate £259 billion in economic output, create around 130,000 construction jobs each year and support a further 369,000 jobs across the wider economy and supply chain. It would also add around 0.9 per cent to UK GDP annually for the next ten years while delivering an £89 billion boost to the construction sector.
The report argues that prioritising brownfield development would allow Britain to increase housebuilding while protecting the Green Belt, preserving biodiversity and creating denser, lower-carbon communities close to existing infrastructure.
It also concludes that every £1 invested by government in social housing would return £1.92 in economic benefits, strengthening the case for a new generation of council housebuilding.
Dale Vince said: “We’ve been told for years that building homes is a cost. This research shows the opposite. Housebuilding is one of the biggest economic opportunities Britain has.
“We can tackle the housing crisis, create hundreds of thousands of skilled jobs, grow the economy and do it without concreting over the countryside. The land is there. The need is there. The economic case couldn’t be clearer.
“Britain needs homes, but it also needs growth. A serious brownfield building programme delivers both.”
Mr Vince said the findings should bolster support for ambitious plans to expand council housebuilding, including proposals by Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham for the biggest programme of council house construction since the post-war era.
“Anyone wondering whether Britain can afford to build social housing is asking the wrong question,” he said. “The evidence shows we can’t afford not to.”
The report is published against the backdrop of a deepening housing shortage. Labour’s pledge to deliver 1.5 million homes during this Parliament is already widely viewed as being off track, while more than 1.3 million households remain on social housing waiting lists across England.
England has delivered an average of just 7,363 new social rented homes each year over the past decade through councils and housing associations. At that rate, the report says, it would take 182 years to meet existing demand.
Meanwhile, housing benefit spending is expected to reach £36 billion this year, with more than a third of the money flowing directly to private landlords. Over the next five years, private landlords are expected to receive a further £69 billion through housing benefit and housing-related Universal Credit.
Mr Vince said Britain was paying the price for decades of underinvestment in affordable housing.
“For too many young people, owning a home has become a fantasy and renting has become a financial trap,” he said.
“We’re spending tens of billions every year subsidising high rents instead of investing in homes people can actually afford.
“Building a new generation of social and affordable homes isn’t just housing policy – it’s economic policy. It’s industrial policy. It’s about giving people security, creating jobs, cutting welfare costs and keeping talented young people in Britain.
“We’ve spent years managing decline. It’s time to start building Britain’s future instead.”
