Sajid Javid pledges £250m ‘infrastructure revolution’ boost for homes as election campaign gets underway
2 min read
Sajid Javid has pledged to spend more than £250 million to invest in 20,000 new homes in “areas of high demand” across the country.
The Chancellor said the money will come from the Housing Infrastructure Fund, which is aimed at improving road, schools and transport links across the Midlands, and the east and south east of England.
Mr Javid, who was set to announce his first Budget as Chancellor on 6 November but had it cancelled after MPs blocked Boris Johnson's Brexit deal, said: "When I was Housing Secretary I set this fund up to help ensure homes can be built in areas that need it the most, and enable people to live where they want.
“I have now launched an infrastructure revolution and this step-change in funding will ensure that all parts of the country benefit as we level-up opportunities.
“This £250m will increase the number of houses available to buy and help support people to achieve their dream of home ownership.”
Oxfordshire County Council will receive the largest slice of the cash, with £102m to build 5,050 homes.
A total £52.3m will also also go to Surrey County Council to pay for a water treatment facility and 1,500 homes.
Local authorities in Suffolk, Leicestershire, Rutland and Kent are also set to benefit from the cash handout, the Treasury said.
But Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell dismissed Mr Javid's announcement as a "pathetic publicity stunt announcement".
He said: "When there are millions of people on our housing waiting lists and families with children living in containers, we need real change and real investment in our infrastructure, not this derisory drop in the ocean."
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