Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon, welcomed the Devon Housing Commission chaired by Lord Best to North Devon. The Commission comprising of Devon’s Local Authorities and the University of Exeter visited the Woolacombe Community Land Trust and various sites around Ilfracombe.
The Commission is looking at ways to make a change in social and housing policy with pragmatic solutions to be delivered locally moving into the next decade. North Devon is hugely affected by the loss of rental properties to holiday lets with a reduction of 67% since 2021. The Government is working on this as the problem which is particularly acute in coastal constituencies but it will require collaboration across different departments.
Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon said:
“Housing remains a critical issue for far too many people in North Devon. As the only Member of Parliament in the Devon Housing Commission, I spoke about the impact of second homes and short term holiday lets and to highlight the problems that are particularly acute in coastal and rural areas.
“In June, I took part in the ‘Delivering of New Housing Supply’ debate led by the Member for Haltemprice and Howden to showcase that North Devon faces limitations when the planning system itself is not designed to factor in rurality. This visit was an opportunity to represent these housing challenges to the Commission and look at the next steps where rurality can be considered.
“I also spoke about potential solutions such as the opportunities with the brownfield sites we have and utilise and reclassify dormant commercial properties where possible. Whilst there is no easy fix, I will continue to work both in Westminster and North Devon to ensure that local people can live and work in the area they were brought up in.”
Lord Best, Chair of the Devon Housing Commission:
“The Commission was much impressed by its visit to North Devon, by the significance of housing shortages on the local economy and the life chances of local families, but also by the way the local authority, the local MP and the local community - including through Community Land Trusts - are determined to address the problem. We hope very much the Commission's work will assist their efforts.”
