Minister says no new homes without plan for water

12 hours ago

Helen CattPolitical editor, South East

Housing Secretary Steve Reed said the government would ensure infrastructure was in place for new housing

PA Media Steve Reed, a man with short grey hair and beard in a blue suit with a white shirt and red tie — Housing Secretary Steve Reed said the government would ensure infrastructure was in place for new housing

The Housing Secretary Steve Reed has said new homes "will not be built" if the infrastructure to provide them with water is not in place.

MPs across Kent and Sussex have raised concerns about government housebuilding targets after repeated problems with the supply of drinking water.

Speaking to BBC South East on a visit to a youth club in Ramsgate, Reed said: "We cannot have a new home built if you turn on the tap and nothing comes out."

The government has committed to building 1.5m homes in England between 2024 and 2029 and has increased mandatory targets for councils.

Local MPs have expressed concerns about housebuilding targets after repeated problems with water supplies in the region

Getty Images two builders look up at a construction site which appears to be blocks of high rise flats — Local MPs have expressed concerns about housebuilding targets after repeated problems with water supplies in the region

Reed said the government would "absolutely make sure that all the infrastructure is in place to support new housebuilding".

He said that meant roads and energy supply, as well as water.

The government set up a Water Delivery Taskforce in 2025 with the water industry and regulators to work on delivering planned investment in infrastructure.

Ministers are also understood to be considering requiring developers of new housing estates to provide their own water supply.

In June, the Water Minister Emma Hardy told MPs in the House of Commons that discussions were underway about building homes that used water more efficiently to reduce demand.

Reed did not commit to altering targets for housebuilding for the region.

There have been repeated problems with the water supply in the South East

Simon Jones/BBC a man opens a huge stack of water bottles wrapped in cellophane for distribution during water issues in the South East — There have been repeated problems with the water supply in the South East

Reed also said the government had given the go-ahead to build new reservoirs for the first time in 30 years.

Helen Whately, the Conservative MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, who is campaigning against housing developments in her constituency, was sceptical of Reed's pledge.

She said taking Reed "at his word" would mean stopping developments that were already in the pipeline, as she claimed the infrastructure was "most definitely not there - water, roads, doctors... none of it."

"I'm not holding my breath, she added, "and who knows what will happen when Andy Burnham becomes Prime Minister."

Burnham, who was sworn in as the Labour MP for Makerfield on Monday, is the frontrunner to take over from Keir Starmer as Prime Minister.

He has backed stronger public control of utilities such as water.

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Minister says no new homes without plan for water

UK Government