States members express concerns over whether 1,000 properties can materialise by 2020

Tuesday 31 January 2017

Doubt has been cast on whether the Minister for Housing can deliver on a promise of 1,000 affordable homes to be built by 2020 during yesterday’s States Assembly sitting.

Reform Jersey Deputy Montfort Tadier had questioned Housing Minister Anne Pryke over what she was doing to alleviate ‘rental stress’ - when over 30% of an islander’s gross income is consumed by lease payments – which currently affects nearly three quarters of low-income households living in privately-rented accommodation.

The question comes following revelations that Jersey’s properties are among the least affordable in the world, and the most recent States Housing Report showing that the Island’s property prices are less affordable now than at any point during the last five years.

While the Minister had responded that 1,000 homes were still on the cards for 2020 – including 151 at Le Squez and 147 at La Collette, as well as over 400 on other sites – Deputy Geoff Southern challenged the suggestion over the fact that so few had come to fruition in 2015-16.

Pictured: Jersey property prices are at their least affordable in the last five years, according to the Housing Report 2015.

Deputy Judy Martin concurred, adding that achieiving this number in just three years seemed like a “real push.”

But the Minister defended the claim, adding several times that “building doesn’t happen overnight” and that various planning barriers would have to be cleared before the houses will emerge.

Deputy Tadier remained unconvinced, however, likening the “invisible homes” to ‘the Emperor’s New Clothes’.

“Just because we can’t see them, doesn’t mean they're not there,” he commented.

He went on to contend that even if the houses are built, they will not be able to fulfil demand, given the population increase of 5,290 over the last five years, which he predicted would be similar over the next five.

Pictured left to right: Reform Jersey politicians Deputy Sam Mézec, Deputy Montfort Tadier and Deputy Geoff Southern all challenged the Minister over her housing construction plans.

“Does the Minister accept that she can’t for all the good will in the world solve the demand simply by building?"

"...Does she accept that because of that she needs to look at other issues including things like rent control, including things like property taxes for second, third, tenth, twentieth homes and also property taxes for unoccupied propertises to make sure that property in Jersey is maximised and properties that exist already can be put on the market?" Deputy Tadier questioned.

But the Minister felt that the effect of the population increase's stress on housing availability would be somewhat tempered by the fact that new residents are not able to access social housing for five years from their arrival. She maintained that there would be no one solution to solve all of the Island’s current housing difficulties at once.

St Helier Connétable Simon Crowcroft also quizzed the Minister on whether the Department would be mindful of the tendency of new housing being concentrated in urban areas, and whether she would support extension of the Millennium Town Park to mitigate some of this urban development by creating green spaces.

"The Constable is right that we need to use every available space that we can use in town, but that's providing ...the community is looked after too. That's one of our full objectives within the housing strategy," Deputy Pryke responded.