ROYAL INSTITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHITECTS' HOMEWISE CAMPAIGN

That this House believes that England faces a housing shortage with fewer homes being built than the new households that are being formed each year; welcomes the Royal Institute of British Architects' HomeWise Campaign which calls for greater information for homebuyers and renters and establishes the Future Homes Commission to build a comprehensive picture of homes fit for the 21st century; notes the findings of research based on a sample of homes being built by the UK's top eight housebuilders, showing that the average new home currently being built is around eight per cent. smaller than the recommended minimum size set out by the Greater London Authority; and calls on the Government to endorse two key policy recommendations from the report by making it mandatory for energy performance certificates to be made available to consumers at point of market and working with the housebuilding industry to introduce an industry-wide voluntary agreement that housebuilders should publish data about the size and design of new homes.