Alex Toal

Regulators and Ombudsmen – time to clear up the system? Could moving to a single Homes Regulator and Homes Ombudsman help it easier for residents to get recourse?

Should we move to a single regulator and ombudmsan service in housing?

Labour's new legislation is bringing forward new bodies for private renters and leaseholders, but would simplifying the landscape provide an easier resource for tenants?

open.substack.com/pub/housinga...

5 key questions for housing politics in 2026 On affordability and the positioning of key campaign groups and parties on the housing debates of this year.

How does the affordability agenda play out in Labour's housing policy? What next from campaigners and the sector? How do the populists flesh out their agendas?

With politics back for 2026, my thoughts on a few key questions for housing politics:

open.substack.com/pub/housinga...

A quick history of Section 106 And why I am the most fun at every dinner party I go to

With the minced pies and mulled wine just about polished off, I thought that a history of Section 106 would be...a fun thing to do?

S.106 reform looks on the agenda, with questions on how to maximise developer contributions to deliver for communities.

open.substack.com/pub/housinga...

How do we define success in housing? How do we turn the physical outputs of our housing solutions into human outcomes?

How do we define success in housing?

Some reflections on LHG's policy day, this week's planning announcements, and how we ensure that Labour's housing successes turn into human outcomes.

open.substack.com/pub/housinga...

Thank you Mary!

So I decided to start a Substack!

Working in housing and politics, I am lucky to listen in on fascinating conversations and events, which I wanted to write up and think about more.

Starting off on Steve Reed at the Select Committee and LHA rates:

housingalex.substack.com/p/on-lha-gen...

So proud of the whole @labourhousinggroup.bsky.social team for making Labour Conference’s first-ever Housing Zone a huge success.

Our 18 events across 3 days covered the breadth and depth of the housing crisis, now it’s time to take their energy and ideas and put them into action.

Others have noted that this means foreign-born people are LESS likely than UK-born people to be in prison. What I want to note is that The Times is now referring to foreign-born UK citizens as ‘foreigners’. This includes Boris Johnson, Sir Mo Farah, Emma Watson, Rory Stewart and little old me.

Why are young adults in the English-speaking world so unhappy? Society sold the dream of home ownership — then cruelly snatched it away

The Housing Theory of Everything strikes again:

“English-speaking governments, policymakers and societies have raised a generation to play the home ownership game. They have then not so much ripped up the rule book as confiscated the board and all the pieces without explanation”

on.ft.com/44PJSJg

Since the election Labour has got to grips with the housing crisis, going above and beyond to lay the groundwork to build 1.5 million homes, deliver a generational boost in social housing, and fix flawed tenures.

More on their wins from me at
@redbrickblog.bsky.social 👇

Thanks to @alextoal.bsky.social for organising the first book club meeting of @labourhousinggroup.bsky.social

A thumbs up for the first book!

Excited to debut our 'Class of 2024' series ahead of the anniversary of the election next week, with new Labour MPs looking back at the Government's housing achievements over the past year.

Be sure to check out our first piece from Shaun Davies on New Towns:

Another chart, just for London.

Repurposing all empty homes - including those we technically can't - get London to <1/2 of its 10-year housebuilding target.

But doing so disregards the places where new homes are needed and the useful role empty homes have.
www.centreforcities.org/blog/there-a...

Broadly I agree! But most of the government’s planning reform also has relatively little to do to nature so spinning “builders vs blockers” into “housing vs nature” also feels disingenuous.

I mean I also think that we’re also a nation of having-somewhere-to-live-lovers and that we need new homes, pylons and railways to counter the climate crisis.

'We know people want change. Labour needs to make it' - LabourList Labour is in power nationally, and unlike other parties can deliver change nationally, writes Morgan Jones.

People want change, and conveniently Labour is in power with a massive majority and able to deliver it. I've written about why the party needs to concentrate on carrying out its agenda:

labourlist.org/2025/05/jone...

Not to ruin your day but I just looked up “rizz” in Hansard and the single result it returns from the 21st century so much worse than you could imagine.

£2 billion new investment to support biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation Hard working families to get safe and secure homes as Chancellor announces £2 billion injection of new grant funding to deliver up to 18,000 new social and affordable homes.

The Housing Forum is very pleased to see today's announcement of £2bn additional funding for affordable housing this parliament. www.gov.uk/government/n...

Can a Labour government build more homes without exacerbating climate breakdown? - Red Brick Former Labour MEP Paul Brannen makes the case that the increase of the use of timber in construction is an urgent pressure, in order to meet Labour's housing targets without exacerbating climate break...

@paulbrannenne.bsky.social wrote a brilliant piece for Red Brick on this last year, well worth a read!

redbrickblog.co.uk/2024/05/labo...

Timber in construction roadmap 2025

One for housing nerds, the Government has just published their timber in construction roadmap.

A clear area of improvement for the UK’s built environment, which uses a lot less timber than comparable countries:

www.gov.uk/government/p...

For too long, residents have endured noisy, disruptive pedicabs.

TfL is consulting on cracking down on this issue under the Pedicabs (London) Act 2024—let’s ensure amplified noise is banned for good.

Join me in calling for TfL to stop the noise.

www.rachelblake.org.uk/stopthenoise

This is pretty big - research from @centreforcities.bsky.social has showed that there is land for 2m new homes around stations in the green belt alone: www.centreforcities.org/press/centre...

Thank you, was a pleasure speaking with you!

Public investment in social housing will be crucial over the coming Parliament to reverse decades of chronic under-investment.

Read more ➡️ https://buff.ly/4jdDb8W

A provoking title from Andy and a great point underlying it.

Streeting has frequently referred to himself as the “patient-in-chief” when discussing NHS reform, and work is needed to ensure that social tenants are empowered and treated with greater respect.

Will the Renters’ Rights Bill transform the Private Rented Sector? - Red Brick Ahead of the Renters' Rights Bill's Third Reading on 14th January, Jacky Peacock lays out the changes it will introduce and the need for firm enforcement through the database established by the Bill.

NEW | Will the Renters’ Rights Bill transform the Private Rented Sector?

Ahead of the Renters’ Rights Bill’s 3rd Reading on 14th January, Jacky Peacock lays out the changes it will introduce and the need for firm enforcement through the new PRS database.

redbrickblog.co.uk/2025/01/rent...

Too many reports vary between “why don’t we just introduce rent controls” to “there’s no point mentioning PR because it’ll never happen” when the truth is that popularity matters but shouldn’t be a pre-requisite for discussing policy.

Going through IPPR’s new report on improving turnout and spotted this table, a version of which every piece of similar research should have

This World Homelessness Day let’s raise our ambitions - Red Brick Matt Downie, Chief Executive of Crisis, lays out a 5-point plan to meaningfully tackle homelessness, from a focus on outcomes to prioritising prevention.

Today's extra £1bn for addressing homelessness is truly welcome.

Previously, Matt Downie from Crisis laid out a road map in Red Brick for how the Government could end homelessness for good:

redbrickblog.co.uk/2024/10/this...

Kemi Badenoch’s shift right bodes ill for housing - Red Brick Since the election, Badenoch has already shifted the Conservatives right on renters’ rights, housing delivery and migration, returning to the party to its days of more divisive rhetoric.

So that is our take on Badenoch! Be sure to check out the full piece and check back in with us after Christmas for our final piece on the Lib Dems!

redbrickblog.co.uk/2024/12/kemi...