This article is an external press release originally published on the Landlord News website, which has now been migrated to the Just Landlords blog.
James Brokenshire was appointed as the Secretary for Housing, Communities and Local Government on Monday 30th April, replacing Sajid Javid, who has taken over from Amber Rudd at the Home Office.
Brokenshire became a minister in 2011, spending three years as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime and Security during the coalition government. He became Minister for Security and Immigration in 2014, and after Theresa May became Prime Minister in July 2016, he took over as Northern Ireland Secretary.
As Just Landlords points out, ‘The Government’s housing minister is changing around 20 times faster than the average home mover, who moves house once every 19 years.’
L&Q Chief Executive David Montague said:
“Sajid Javid has made a sterling contribution towards addressing our housing crisis over the last two years and we are sorry to see him move on from his role. L&Q has enjoyed a good working relationship with James Brokenshire at a constituency level over many years, and he has demonstrated a sound understanding of the complex issues involved in housing.
“We look forward to continuing that relationship, while also working with him to help deliver the Government’s housing ambitions and increase the supply of much needed affordable, quality homes.”
Mark Hayward, Chief Executive, NAEA Propertymark and David Cox, Chief Executive, ARLA Propertymark welcome James Brokenshire’s appointment to Housing Secretary:
“We welcome James Brokenshire into his new role as Housing Secretary, following Sajid Javid’s move to Home Secretary. Over the last 12 months, housing has been high on the political agenda, with Sajid Javid and his team working closely with the industry to make qualifications for property professionals compulsory, and ultimately make the process of buying, selling, renting or leasing a property better for consumers.
“We look forward to meeting the new Minister and working with him and his team over the coming months and hope the Department’s position and policy focus stays on track.”
The changes follow on from Amber Rudd’s resignation following the Windrush scandal. Today, Sajid Javid heads to his first Cabinet meeting as Home Secretary, replacing Amber Judd at a downing street summit at 9.30am.
Sky News writes this morning, “There are at least four leak inquiries into the release of private letters sent to and from Ms Rudd, BuzzFeed News reports. Ms Rudd has since said she thinks Mr Javid will be an “excellent” Home Secretary. She did not answer when questioned outside her home if she had fallen on Prime Minister Theresa May’s sword.”
According to The Guardian, ‘the new home secretary [Sajid Javid] is no fan of May’s tens of thousands immigration target – Javid thinks immigration should not be a numbers game. Nor is he thought to be particularly partial to keeping student numbers in it.’
As Just Landlords pointed out last summer, ‘The Government’s housing minister is changing around 20 times faster than the average home mover, who moves house once every 19 years.’
