UK Inquiry Tracker

Unlocking land for housing

Public Accounts Committee Open Inquiry

Opened: 12 Dec 2025 Parliament page

A shortage of land is cited by government as underpinning the housing crisis. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) supports programmes aimed at boosting land supply for housing development which is deemed necessary to ‘unlock’. This could be land not currently viable or attractive enough for development … Read more A shortage of land is cited by government as underpinning the housing crisis. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) supports programmes aimed at boosting land supply for housing development which is deemed necessary to ‘unlock’. This could be land not currently viable or attractive enough for development through the market alone. MHCLG reported that it unlocked land capable of delivering 79,000 homes in 2024-25, and 347,000 over the past five years. In its 2019 report on the sale of public land, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) warned that government at the time would fail to meet key land disposal targets, with the government failing to use its position as a major land owner to develop and execute a strategy to do so. In its 2025 report on improving local areas through developer funding, the PAC found that housing developer funds were failing to reach local communities due to systemic problems, highlighting the unacceptable issue of unsold developer-funded homes sitting empty. In early 2026, the National Audit Office (NAO) is due to publish its findings in its report into unlocking land for housing, which will explore MHCLG’s approach to making land available for housing where the market fails to do so. Proceeding from the NAO’s findings, the PAC will take evidence from senior MHCLG and Homes England officials as it scrutinises how well government is delivering its ambitions to build the right homes in the right places. If you have evidence on these issues, please submit here by 23:59 on Monday 30 March 2026. Please look at the requirements for written evidence submissions and note that the Committee cannot accept material as evidence that is published elsewhere. The Committee decides what information to publish and how. You can request anonymity or confidentiality when you send evidence, but it is for the Committee to say whether it will agree.It may treat submissions confidentially, even where you have not requested this. Please note that the Committee’s inquiry cannot assist with individual cases. If you need help with an individual problem you are having, you may wish to read the information on Parliament’s website about who you can contact with different issues. Show less

1 Oral session

1 Letter

1 Event

Activity timeline 3 events

21 May
2026

Oral evidence

Oral evidence session

21 May
2026

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government relating to Unlocking land for housing, 19…

21 May
2026

Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House

Committee event

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

21 May 2026

View on parliament.uk

Alison Crofton · Homes England Alison Crofton · Homes England Amy Rees · HMPPS Cathy Francis · Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government Joanna Key · Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Sarah Healey · Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Correspondence 1 letter

21 May 2026 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government relating to Unlocking land for housing, 19 May 2026

Parliament page