Apr 18 2005
The Labour Party published its manifesto for the General Election this morning. Among the key points of most interest to the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) are:
- Ensuring that the planning system continues to protect the sustainability of local and regional environments
- Developing a planning regime which is simpler, faster and more responsive to local and business needs including the need to create jobs and regenerate cities
- Upgrading primary schools nation-wide in a 15-year Building Schools for the Future programme
- Increasing the annual supply of new social homes by 50% by 2008, giving local authorities the ability to start building homes again, and bringing empty homes back into use
- Legislating, as soon as time allows, to implement the findings of the Heritage Protection Review
- Giving every school student the opportunity to experience out-of-classroom learning in the natural environment
Building all newly developed communities to high environmental standards, and developing a clear plan to minimise the impact of new communities on the environment. All new homes receiving government funding to meet the new Code for Sustainable Buildings from April 2006 with local authorities encouraged to apply similar standards to private homes.
Commenting on the Labour manifesto, RIBA President George Ferguson said:
“This is a comprehensive programme and I welcome the Labour Party’s focus on sustainability and delivering better public services through an improved public realm. Much is in line with the RIBA’s own Manifesto for Architecture which we recently published. But while Labour understand the link between design and better services or neighbourhoods, and have made good progress on planning reform, much remains to be done. If we are to have better public services and sustainable communities then it’s time to deliver on design.
“A bold programme needs bold delivery. Equalised VAT on all forms of construction would help bring empty homes back into use and regenerate our cities. And if we are to have minimum environmental standards on all new homes, then why can’t we make government funding for all new buildings conditional upon good design quality?
“The proposal to give every pupil the opportunity to experience out-of-classroom learning in the natural environment is terrific. I would add that the built environment is also a fantastic resource for a range of subjects, and every school should be a demonstration project for sustainability. A better built environment needs a better-informed public – and we need to start early.”