The Guardian: "London housing crisis: should we build on the green belt?"

Link to The Guardian

"... Environmentalists, free-enterprise evangelists and even mainstream political parties tend to agree that car-dependent suburban sprawl is bad stuff, both environmentally and economically. It's an  interesting debate.

"Given London's expected population surge and the already high densities of much of inner London, it could be that rather than building new suburbs, we need to turn our existing ones into Compact Cities, if Greater London is to adapt and thrive. But would those suburbs agree?"

The Guardian: "Government 'failing to get enough homes built'"

Link to web site

"Ministers are failing to tackle the housing crisis and not enough new homes are being built, leading to rising rental levels and growing homelessness and overcrowding, according to a report by leading housing experts.

"The report by the National Housing Federation, Shelter and the Chartered Institute of Housing highlights areas where the coalition is in charge of deteriorating housing conditions. It points out that while there has been a small increase in new builds, the 109,020 completed homes in 2011 is almost 40% below the 2007 peak of 175,560 – and less than half the number the government admits would be required annually to meet demand."