Dilemma over low-cost homes

Only a fraction of the thousands of properties needed are expected to be built in the coming years, leaving thousands of people unable to find a home near where they work or have family roots.

As well as having social consequences for families forced to live

apart, this shortfall also threatens to create economic problems.

The scaling back of plans will hit the construction sector, while some lower-paid workers will struggle to afford to find a home in those areas where there are employment vacancies.

The problem has its roots in Margaret Thatcher's landmark right-to-buy

sale of council houses in the 1980s.

Short-term political benefits for the Conservatives and personal gains for people who bought their homes have left a long-term legacy, with inadequate measures put in place at the time to build a new generation of social housing.

This issue is compounded by the construction companies having shown little interest, until now, in building affordable homes. And it is exacerbated, still further, by the Government's public spending cuts, the consequence of which is local councils being unable to step into the breach.

Many will welcome the abandonment of Labour's Soviet-style house-building targets, which aimed to tackle shortages using the bluntest instrument imaginable.

This decision does, at least, give local communities control over planning. The problem is that many communities adopt a "not in my back yard" mantra and simply do not want any more housing. New proposals by the coalition to make it easier to build affordable housing, providing 90 per cent of local people agree to a scheme, are unlikely to help. Experts estimate the region needs 15,000 new affordable homes. But, in Yorkshire, the vast majority of councils have failed to provide even half, with 12 authorities unable to achieve more than 20 per cent of their specified target.

The longer building programmes stall, the worse the problem will become. Of course, it is accepted that the Government has to make spending cuts, but it cannot abrogate responsibility forever. As such, Ministers need to consider innovative ways that enable new homes to be built in the current climate.