Government has not done ‘full’ impact assessment of Right to Buy extension, Michael Gove admits

Cabinet minister Michael Gove has admitted the government has not conducted a “full” impact assessment of Boris Johnson’s extension of Right to Buy.

Quizzed by MPs, the Levelling Up secretary was also unable to say where the funding for the newly announced policy would come from, insisting: “Watch this space”.

It comes after the prime minister unveiled proposals to extend Margaret Thatcher’s flagship housing scheme, Right to Buy, to housing association tenants last week.

But housing campaigners dismissed the policy — announced days after Mr Johnson narrowly survived a confidence vote — as a “dangerous gimmick” which could reduce the stock of social housing.

According to The Sunday Times, however, officials had not completed an impact assessment of the shake-up while Mr Gove had privately accused No 10 of “bouncing” the policy before it was ready.

Pressed by MPs on the Housing Committee whether there had been an assessment on the possible consequences of social housing, Mr Gove replied: “We haven’t conducted a full equalities impact assessment yet”.

“We will do as ever when we bring forward policy. The prime minister explained last Thursday on the basis of the pilot — there had been a full evaluation of that pilot — we felt it was now appropriate to roll it out nationally”.

Speaking on Monday, the cabinet minister suggested a “full impact assessment” of the policy could not be done until all the details of the policy are “furnished”.

He also insisted that the government would ensure housing associations do not “see detriment to their balance sheets” as a result of the policy unveiled by the prime minister last week.

But asked where the funds would come from, the cabinet minister replied: “From across government. We’ll be saying more about how we propose to ensure we have the funding necessary in order to deliver the programme.”

He went on: “The Treasury has agreed that it will be funded — I think we’ll have to say watch this space.”

He also reiterated that the overall numbers of people who will be able to benefit from the extension of Right to Buy will be capped — but did not provide MPs with a precise figure.

Setting out his housing policy reforms, Mr Johnson said last week: “We will finish the right-to-own reforms Margaret Thatcher began in the 1980s.

He said there are 2.5 million households whose homes belong to associations, saying “they’re trapped, they can’t buy, they don’t have the security of ownership, they can’t treat their home as their own or make the improvements that they want”.

He said that some associations have treated tenants with “scandalous indifference”, adding: “So, it’s time for change. Over the coming months we will work with the sector to bring forward a new right-to-buy scheme.”

Mr Johnson added that it would give “millions” more the chance to own their own home and would see “one-for-one replacement of each social housing property sold” while being affordable within existing spending plans.