Zoë Garbett AM responds to the Mayor’s green belt proposal: This won’t solve London’s housing crisis

In response to the Mayor’s recent announcement to build on the green belt, Green Party London Assembly Member Zoë Garbett said:

"The Mayor’s green belt proposal talks about affordable homes, but that’s just developer-speak for housing that’s still out of reach for most people. There’s no guarantee of 100% social housing in this plan, just vague promises dressed up as affordability.

“If we’re serious about fixing this crisis right now, we need to be honest about what actually works. That means freezing Right to Buy to stop the loss of desperately needed social homes. It means cracking down on long-term empty homes, with thousands of properties left unoccupied while families are forced to sleep in temporary accommodation. It means regulating Airbnb-style short lets that are hollowing out communities and driving up rents. And it means implementing rent controls so we can break this cycle of unaffordability and take back control of our housing.

“While the Mayor drags his feet and banks on developers to fix the housing crisis, across London, homelessness is on the rise, people are being pushed into precarious and dangerous living situations, primary schools are closing and communities are being torn apart as more and more people are being priced out of their neighbourhoods. We are far beyond a housing crisis. The system is completely broken.

“Yet instead of tackling the root causes, we’re being sold the false promise that building on the green belt will somehow solve our city’s housing crisis.

“This project will just recreate the same broken housing model that’s left so many Londoners struggling – high rents, empty homes and landlords buying up more social housing.

“Not only will this fail to solve London’s housing crisis, but it’s also a devastating blow to the environment and our green spaces, especially during a climate emergency. Not exactly what you’d expect from the self-declared ‘greenest Mayor’ ever.”