All councils in England are to be given new, mandatory housing targets, the Right to Buy will be reformed and social landlords will get rent stability as part of a series of housing pledges unveiled today.

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner says the new targets will mean councils must boost housebuilding in areas most in need, helping more people buy their own homes, removing the largest barriers to economic growth, and getting Britain building again.

In addition to restoring mandatory housing targets, the method used to calculate them, which relied on decade old data, will be updated. The new method will require councils to ensure homes are built in the right places and development is proportionate to the size of existing communities, while adding an extra level of ambition in the most unaffordable areas.

Rayner has also announced a series of measures designed to support the social housing sector and boost affordable housing supply, specifically social rent homes.

This includes changes to Right to Buy, giving councils flexibility to use their receipts to build and buy more social homes. The government has started its review of the increased discounts introduced in 2012, with changes to be implemented in the Autumn.

The Deputy Prime Minister also confirmed that details of future government investment in social and affordable housing will be brought forward at the next spending review, so social housing providers can plan for the future and help “deliver the biggest increase in affordable housebuilding in a generation”.

Responding to calls from the sector, the government has also confirmed that at the next fiscal event it will provide councils and housing associations with the rent stability they need to be able to borrow and invest in new and existing homes – while ensuring that there are appropriate protections for both existing and future social housing tenants.

Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner said: “Today marks a significant step to getting Britain building again.

“Our decisive reforms to the planning system correct the errors of the past and set us on our way to tackling the housing crisis, delivering 1.5 million homes for those who really need them.

“And something I am personally proud of, our new flexibilities for councils will boost the number of social and affordable homes, and give working families a better route to a secure home.”

The new rules set out today will reverse the decision last year to water down housing targets, by making them explicitly advisory, at a time when planning permissions were at a record low. The new approach reflects the level of ambition necessary to tackle the housing crisis and meet the government’s commitment to 1.5 million homes.

The Deputy Prime Minister has written to every council Leader and Chief Executive in England to make clear that there is “not just a professional responsibility but a moral obligation to see more homes built”, and that she will not hesitate to use her powers of intervention should it be necessary – including taking over an authority’s plan making directly.

The government says the first port of call for development will be brownfield land. Reforms announced today will make explicit that the default answer to brownfield development should be “yes” and promote homebuilding at greater densities in urban centres, like towns and cities.

To help deliver 1.5 million homes over the next five years, councils will have to review their green belt land if needed to meet their own target, identifying and prioritising ‘grey belt’ land, which the government has today set out a definition for. This includes land on the edge of existing settlements or roads, as well as old petrol stations and car parks.

The update will make clear the requirement for councils to consider the proximity of new homes to existing transport infrastructure.

Where local authorities do not have up-to-date plans in place or enable sufficient housing to come forward to meet local targets, homebuilders can bring forward proposals on grey belt land. In all cases, land that is safeguarded for environmental reasons will continue to be protected.

Land released in the Green Belt will be subject to the government’s ‘golden rules’, which make clear that development should deliver 50% affordable homes, increase access to green spaces and put the necessary infrastructure is in place, such as schools and GP surgeries.

Alongside building new housing, the government says it is committed to making it easier to build key infrastructure such as laboratories, gigafactories and data centres, as well as making changes to deliver more large onshore wind projects and solar development across the country.

More detail on the social housing announcements:

The government will increase the flexibilities on how councils can use their Right to Buy receipts, which includes: removing the caps on the percentage of replacements delivered as acquisitions and the percentage cost of a replacement home that can be funded using these receipts, and giving councils the ability to combine Right to Buy receipts with section 106 contributions, with these flexibilities in place for an initial two years and subject to review.

The government says it will review Right to Buy more widely, which includes looking at eligibility criteria and protections for new homes, and will bring forward a consultation in the autumn.

The government confirmed that the third round of the Local Authority Housing Fund will be going ahead, with £450m to councils to acquire and create homes for families at risk of homelessness.

It also confirmed that Awaab’s Law will be introduced into the social rented sector, with more detail and secondary legislation to implement this in due course.

Commenting on the announcements, Neil Jefferson , CEO, Home Builders Federation, said: “Today represents the first and most important step ministers have taken in addressing the barriers to delivering new homes.

“The scale of the government’s housing ambition has given hope to the house building industry that stands ready to increase supply and tackle the country’s housing shortage. The planning system has long failed to provide the amount of land needed to address affordability pressures, but in recent years the elimination of housing targets has led to housing supply plummeting. A reformed, more progressive planning system that requires local authorities to meet their communities’ housing needs is a major step forward to address the barriers to delivery.

Kate Henderson, Chief Executive, National Housing Federation, said: “It’s great to see the government place social and affordable housing at the heart of its plans for tackling the housing crisis.”