Fact check: Funding for brownfield land development launched two years ago
The Government has awarded £68 million to 54 councils as part of a programme that was announced in 2022.
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The Prime Minister has said the Government “is rolling up its sleeves and delivering the change the British people deserve” as he announced £68 million of funding for councils to help build on disused brownfield land.
Sir Keir Starmer said: “I said this Government is on the side of the builders, not the blockers. And I meant it. This funding for councils will see disused sites and industrial wastelands transformed into thousands of new homes in places where people want to live and work. Our brownfield-first approach will not only ramp up housebuilding but also create more jobs, deliver much-needed infrastructure, and boost economic growth across the country.
“This Government is rolling up its sleeves and delivering the change the British people deserve.”
Evaluation
The funding is part of a programme which was first announced in 2022 during Boris Johnson’s time as Prime Minister.
The facts
The funding was announced by the current Labour Government under Sir Keir, but the programme it is part of was announced around two years before Labour won July’s election.
The funding is part of the Brownfield Land Release Fund. The Government release which announced the funding acknowledges in the penultimate paragraph that the fund “was launched in July 2022.”
On July 8 2022, the Government announced that a £180 million brownfield fund would “help to transform disused urban areas into 17,600 new homes” over the next four years.
At the time initially £40 million was made available, with the remaining £140 million being “made available to councils over the next 2 years.”
In December 2023 the Government, during Rishi Sunak’s premiership, announced the third round of funding for the Brownfield Land Release Fund 2.
This would provide up to £80 million, the Government said at the time.
The announcement from the Government on October 15 2024 confirmed that £68 million of this had been allocated, and listed some of the projects that would benefit. It said that 54 councils would benefit.
The release added: “The funding will mean councils can clear empty buildings, former car parks and industrial land to make way for the homes. This category of land is expensive to prepare for housebuilding, meaning sites are sat empty and an eyesore for local communities.”
The first Land Release Fund awarded £45 million to more than 70 council-led projects in February 2018. Applications for the Brownfield Land Release fund opened in April 2021.
Links
Gov.uk – Thousands of new homes to be built as government unlocks brownfield sites (archived)
Gov.uk – Derelict sites to be transformed into new homes as new brownfield fund opens (archived)
£80m to regenerate brownfield land and build thousands of homes (archived)
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