The West Midlands Combined Authority recently published a report, via its Land Commission, highlighting the vital importance of land to the delivery of the region's strategic economic plan. If land isn't available, none of the required houses, offices, shops, leisure-outlets or factories can be built. 

The way councils are funded is moving towards self-financing. Spurred on by the Government's rule change on the use of capital receipts, One Public Estate and increased collaborative working, a lot of surplus assets have been sold off. Stock rationalisation generated short-term capital and may have worked as a quick fix one-off for sub-optimum stock.