Labour’s housing targets aren’t just shortsighted – they’re suicidal

Building homes to hit targets while destroying the ecosystems that we need to survive isn’t bold – it would cost lives and could cost us the Earth, writes Chris Packham

Last week, Keir Starmer recommitted to the government’s manifesto promise to build 1.5 million homes over its first five years in power. “What is the point of setting a target that you can deliver without bold action?” he asked. That’s a fair point. We do need to address the housing crisis.

But building homes to hit targets while destroying the ecosystems that we need to survive isn’t bold. At best it’s shortsighted – at worst, it’s plain suicidal. It would cost lives and could cost us the Earth.

This week, the government has unveiled its national housebuilding programme under the revised national planning policy framework. It is a litmus test of Labour’s real values and vision. Does it put forward solutions that deliver the type of housing we really need, while protecting nature and the environment – or does it bow to the influence of unscrupulous developers chasing profit and pretending that we are not in the midst of climate breakdown and biodiversity loss?

The housing crisis is, of course, undeniable: homelessness is rising, people are trapped in horrific living conditions, rents are soaring and home ownership is increasingly out of reach for most – particularly young people. Real action is needed.

But you only have to look at the flooding, the fires and the storms that are battering the UK and the rest of the world – with fatal consequences – to realise we are in deep trouble. Getting out of it will require intelligent, joined-up thinking and coordinated action across the board. The government’s current proposals won’t solve our housing shortages or improve affordability – and they’ll make these other problems even worse. It is a very bad move indeed.

Proposals to loosen planning rules and build on the green belt – by reclassifying some of it as “grey belt” land and overruling objections aimed at protecting nature – risk doing irreversible damage to a countryside already on the brink of ruin. These policies would destroy carbon sinks like trees and soil, threaten our already significantly diminished biodiversity, and increase pollution. Just building the 1.5 million new houses could absorb the country’s entire carbon budget by 2050. We must implement better solutions.

We need policies that integrate climate adaptation into housing strategies – not ones that compound the problem. Yet we are still sold the lie that this destruction is all worthwhile. It is yet another attempt to divert our attention from (and delay dealing with) the planet-wrecking issues at hand. Protecting people and protecting nature aren’t opposing forces – we rely on the same ecosystems as newts and bats for our clean air, water and health. Nature is our life support.

The irony is that, in its rush to meet its own targets, the government is ignoring a critical fact that could help it: we just don’t need to sacrifice our green spaces to meet housing targets. The Community Planning Alliance’s new report – Homes for Everyone – demonstrates that we can unlock enough housing for enough people, while still protecting nature. It outlines how we can provide people with the safe, warm houses they need, how we can build more than a million homes on brownfield land, renovate 1.5 million empty properties across the UK, and repurpose our unused commercial buildings – all while protecting our valuable green spaces.

This is also exactly what the public wants. Polling carried out by the campaign group shows that 78 per cent of people believe it’s important for the government’s housing strategy to protect nature.

You see, being bold isn’t the same as being brash – it’s not about grabbing headlines and promising shortsighted fixes. Boldness requires the courage to tell the truth and to lead people on a journey to a better world. Boldness is about taking smart action – it’s about telling developers that they must build affordable homes, with proper insulation, solar panels, greywater collection systems and EV charging points. Those homes need to be within reach of schools and hospitals – and they need green space where people can walk and enjoy some free natural health. They must not harm our wildlife.

The government has the chance to implement a housing strategy that builds sustainably, preserves our precious environment, and delivers the homes we desperately need. When I saw Starmer laughing about the need to conserve bats, I felt cheated.

We voted for change. We voted for kindness, honesty, compassion and common sense; we also voted for a common good. We didn’t vote for more ignorance and stupidity. At that moment, I made a pledge: the first piece of ancient woodland and the first veteran tree threatened by reckless planning... I’ll be there. I, too, will be bold.

Chris Packham is a naturalist, author, nature photographer and television presenter