With the General Election debate starting to heat up, it's pleasing to see the housing crisis is featuring quite prominently in the major political parties' manifestos and, more importantly, local government's role as part of the solution.

While it is not quite the 1951 election where the parties were competing on who could build the most homes, with Harold McMillan's prime ministerial credentials established on the back of delivering on housing pledges, there is significant recognition by all that the number of homes built needs to increase dramatically. The question is how can this be delivered?