Big news for local councils today as the government and HCA finally announced the successful 47 who would get cash in the first round of funding to built their own homes for social rent.
The deal is not as great as it might first sound, unfortunately - the lucky local authorities have to match the funding from their own coffers, and in total the package will only build 2,000 new homes.
Nonetheless, this marks a clear change in policy, with a second round of funding to be announced in the autumn and it seems likely more is to come in the future. Gordon Brown has called for more council-built housing, and the Tories have made similar noises about "getting councils more involved" in housebuilding. Whoever the next government is, its time to shake of the nightmare memories of 1960s concrete council estates and urge for better this time round.
