Local MP leads Commons debate on Cornwall’s’ Housing Emergency

Andrew George MP speaking to the House of Commons on 9th Sept24 in a debate on the Housing Emergency in Cornwall.

On Monday, St Ives Liberal Democrat MP Andrew George, led a Commons debate calling for urgent action on the housing emergency in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

The MP Andrew George debated with the new Housing Minister, Matthew Pennycook, on issues affecting residents in Cornwall, where as many as 27,000 people are on the housing waiting list.

Mr George said of the minister: “He accepts that extreme housing problems call for bold measures. I furnished him with a dossier of material before the debate. So, he understood that, under the Conservatives, more than £500million of taxpayers’ money was granted to holiday homeowners – through various tax loopholes and grants – in Cornwall. He was receptive and agrees that the priority should be to invest in affordable homes for locals.

“I challenged his government’s commitment to housebuilding targets. Cornwall has been one of the fastest growing places in the United Kingdom in the last 60 years – nearly trebled its housing stock – yet the housing problems of locals have got significantly worse. I asked him to give Cornwall the devolved power to direct planning policy to meet need rather than developers’ greed. He was not as receptive. So, there’s a battle ahead.”

Andrew, who previously ran successful housing charity Cornwall Community Land Trust, told the House that “extreme housing problems call for extreme measures.”

Mr Pennycook finished the debate by saying “there is clearly a fierce clarity of purpose on both sides of the House in respect of meeting housing need across the county, and I assure all members present that the Government are resolved to do what is necessary to ensure that that can happen.”