Pledge to build ‘entire towns’

THE Labour government will begin building new towns before the next election, Housing Secretary Steve Reed said at the first day of the party's conference in Liverpool.

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Mr Reed, below, who this month succeeded Angela Rayner in the role, addressed the main hall at the Liverpool Exhibition Centre yesterday and promised the government would “get Britain building again”.

He said: “The Tories spent 14 years blocking the homes that people need. They didn't just hold back the economy; they crushed the dreams of families who couldn't afford a decent home.

“Well conference, no more. We will fight the Tory blockers and give working people the key to a decent home they can afford to live in.”

Referring to plans for a tranche of new towns in at least 12 locations, Mr Reed later added: “I will do whatever it takes to get Britain building again and we won't just build homes, we'll build communities. And not just communities but entire towns.

“Our party built new towns after the war to meet our promise of homes fit for heroes. Now, with the worst economic inheritance since that war, we will once again build new towns, with homes fit for families.