Labour would give local areas the power to build houses on the green belt where development would not take away from the beauty of the countryside, the party leader has said. Sir Keir Starmer signalled on Wednesday that reforms such as allowing for some development of green belt land would be introduced should his party…

Housing Secretary Michael Gove has threatened “severe consequences” if the companies responsible for producing the flammable cladding and insulation panels involved in the Grenfell Tower fire do not come up with a financial support package. The fire in the West London suburb of North Kensington in June, 2017 killed 72 people. A public inquiry has…

New rules that will give communities greater control over short-term lets in tourist hot spots where local families say they have been priced out have been proposed by the government. A consultation published on Thursday by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities will propose introducing planning permissions requirements for short-term lets in tourist…

The UK government will make possession of laughing gas a criminal offence as part of its new measures to crack down on anti-social behaviour. The government also said it will impose tighter controls on retailers to prevent the supply of the substance—also known as nitrous oxide—for misuse. A government spokesperson told the BBC on Sunday:…

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has played down cabinet minister Michael Gove’s attendance at a “secret conference” last week which Lord Frost—Britain’s former Brexit negotiator—claimed was evidence of a remainer plot to undermine the choice made by voters at the 2016 referendum. Lord Mandelson, a former EU commissioner, was a speaker at one of the events,…

The UK government has granted planning permission for the country’s first new coal mine in 30 years, provoking anger from environmental campaigners. The coking coal mine on the edge of Whitehaven in Cumbria, which is expected to extract nearly 2.8 million tonnes per year, is expected to create more than 500 jobs. But climate activists…

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government is set to miss its national housebuilding target by 33,000 homes, according to a committee of MPs that said the national housing crisis showed no signs of easing. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities (DLUHC) will deliver 157,000 new homes this year against its forecast of up to…

The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities, Michael Gove, has threatened to cut off the funding to failing housing associations in the wake of the death of Awaab Ishak. Awaab, who was 2 years old, died in December 2020 and at an inquest last week a coroner ruled that his death had…

UK Prime Minister Liz Truss has stressed she must take a responsible approach to the public finances, refusing to rule out real-terms cuts to benefits. Both the Cabinet and the wider Conservative Party are split on whether benefits should increase in line with inflation. Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt, who ran against…

Boris Johnson has announced his resignation as leader of the UK’s ruling Conservative Party. There will now begin a leadership contest for a new Conservative leader, who will become Britain’s next prime minister. Here are some of the potential frontrunners to replace Johnson as prime minister. Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak served as chancellor of the…