UK Budget to Allocate Over £1 Billion for Affordable Housing

Chancellor John Healey is set to announce over £1 billion for social and affordable housing in England as part of an upcoming Budget, boosting the government's decade-long homes program to over £40 billion. The announcement is also expected to grant mayors and regional leaders greater powers and funding, including preferential interest rates for borrowing money from the government to invest in housebuilding.

The Treasury stated that these plans aim to give regional leaders more flexibility and authority over investment decisions. Chancellor Healey indicated that English cities and regions will gain the "right to decide their own future," a sentiment echoed by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who emphasized shifting power to those who "know their communities best."

As part of the regional funding initiative, an initial £285 million in transitional seed funding will be allocated next year to support mayors and local leaders. This aims to reduce reliance on fragmented funding streams from Whitehall. Furthermore, the government will collaborate with mayors to design a new £1.5 billion borrowing facility, available from 2028, to support local priorities such as new homes, high street revitalization, and transport improvements.

"Mayors and local leaders know what their communities need to grow, which is why we are giving them more money, more power and more capacity to get projects moving, build homes and make the right decisions for their areas," Healey said. Areas not currently designated as strategic authorities will also be eligible to access a portion of the £285 million to support local growth projects.

Separately, the Budget is anticipated to include additional support for small breweries. The Treasury stated its intention to "turn the tide for our pint producers."

Reports also suggest that Healey is expected to unveil billions of pounds in new defense spending, with specific details to be provided in the following year's spending review. This comes after Healey's resignation from his previous role as defense secretary over concerns that the defense investment plan was insufficient. He had previously advocated for defense spending to reach 3% of the UK's GDP by 2030, moving towards NATO's target of 3.5% by 2035. Shadow chancellor Andrew Griffith has called for Healey to resign if he fails to outline how the UK will meet the 3% GDP defense spending target by 2030.

In a departure, the Treasury's entrepreneurship adviser, Alex Depledge, announced her resignation, citing that start-ups were being treated as a "sideshow" and marginalized in economic policy. She argued for greater support for scaling businesses in the UK.

Defense Secretary Wes Streeting responded to the criticism regarding defense spending by blaming the Conservatives for past underinvestment in the military, asserting that the current government is committed to providing necessary funding for the armed forces.