Vibrant, successful communities need people both living and working in them. This gives a deeper sense of community and a feeling of life that is absent in commuter towns and villages.

But the lack of affordable homes in Cornwall means many people can’t afford to live near to where they work.

And the lack of indigenous jobs means that our young people move away to find work and are lost to their community.

A focused programme of improving existing housing could create thousands of new local jobs.

New housing developments are full of expensive flats rather than affordable family homes. Meanwhile, the spread of second homes continues – hollowing out communities and undermining the viability of local shops and services.

We also need to make houses energy efficient, especially older houses that were not built with energy conservation in mind. That will make them cheaper to heat and more pleasant to live in, and will provide an effective, painless way to reduce carbon emissions. Such action will also create local jobs.

Our Vision for Housing

50% of all new housing to be affordable for local people, with higher quotas in those parts of Cornwall where there is an acute shortage of affordable homes.

A curb in the rise in second homes.
A campaign for a change in the law to control the number of second homes. Any new house to be used only as the principal permanent residence of the occupier.

Creation of a ‘Warm Zone’ programme. Strengthen the requirement for energy efficiency in all new buildings with the aim of making all new homes carbon neutral. Retrofitting existing housing stock to meet high standards of energy efficiency.