This week I thought I would follow up on my recent Money Matters column for this esteemed publication, where I discussed the changes being proposed to the New Homes Bonus (NHB).

Many readers will have been busy of late constructing their response to the consultation on how to top slice the NHB. I say ‘how', as it was clearly a consultation designed to limit discussion to the practicalities, rather than the principle of the top slice, although I know many responders who refused to be constrained by this simplistic approach.

As well as such weak attempts to limit debate, another feature of the consultation was the overt attempt at ‘divide and rule' for two-tier areas, with the options contrasting the proportion of top slice that either tier would have to bear.

One has to ask why these were the only options – why not simply suggest that NHB be calculated differently – based on council tax Band C instead of Band D, or allocated for five years instead of six?

This would have been less easy for the sector to defend because there was never a strong rationale for either of these two parameters of the current calculation.

Beyond the ‘broken promises' aspect of the proposals, and the fact that many authorities have relied on the NHB to protect front-line services, there is also a wider point about the (lack of) longevity of government policy.

In this case, it is hard to argue that homes built in the last few years were a result of the NHB incentive.  They were largely the result of planning permissions given before NHB was introduced.

But, in giving permissions more recently, many councils have been conscious of the potential of the NHB as an income stream.  So, just as the NHB is starting to make the policy difference that it was intended to do, the rules of the game are changed.

Of course, there still remains some incentive for authorities to take a positive view of relevant planning applications; but in truth, much trust has evaporated from the system and it is hard now not to believe that the rules of the game will be broken again and then once again.

This is a trick that we have seen from all parties in government – just as a policy is starting to work they lose patience with it and try something new.

And just as that is starting to work…