IN the run-up to the referendum, both the Remain and Leave camps claimed that defeat for their side would spell disaster for the UK housing market. It is an issue that unites people across the political spectrum: we need to build more homes. And in the wake of the Brexit vote and negotiations ahead of triggering Article 50, we have to ensure that essential social reforms are driven through. This means putting house-building front and centre of our economic strategy; enabling more people to realise their dream of home ownership.

We know this only too well in Oxfordshire. It's no surprise that people want to live here: our transport network is seeing record levels of investment; we are home to the best university in the world; we have a rich cultural history and of course beautiful green spaces. But the fact that we continue to be rated the least affordable place to live in Britain, with house prices outstripping earnings by sixteen times the average salary, makes it impossible to afford somewhere to live.

I know that the Government recognises this; the Right to Buy scheme, Starter Homes, and commitment to building 200,000 more high quality homes for first time buyers by 2020 have been instrumental in helping people to get on to the housing ladder. The Housing Bill and the Neighbourhood Planning Bill underpin the aim not only to deliver more housing but also to give local people a greater say in where it goes. Indeed I have been demonstrating to the Housing Minister exactly how Oxford echoes London and that this must be recognised throughout the passage of the Housing Bill.

What we need now is to kick start new-builds. That’s why I took great encouragement from the announcement of a £5 billion fund to build tens of thousands of new homes - and twice as fast as usual. A £3 billion Home Building Fund will assist small and medium-sized building firms to build 25,000 new homes by 2020, and up to 225,000 in the longer term. On top of this, a £2 billion loan fund will enable developers to build on unused public land owned by the Government and local authorities. This means high-need areas, like Oxford, can be prioritised, and within that brownfield sites and derelict shopping centres.

We will no longer have to rely on big building firms to build much-needed new homes to go some way to meet demand. Now we can again see more smaller companies and family firms encouraged to build; the very sorts of firms which disappeared during the recession and which are best placed to give local people a greater say in where development goes. Further still, the funding will see builders using more modern building techniques. Just last week planning chiefs at Oxford City Council pointed to smart homes as an innovative way to bring forward housing, and stressed the need for an open approach from local authorities.

The full impact of Brexit on the UK housing market remains to be seen, and as the Chancellor said “when times change, we must change with them”. It is right that the Government moves to deliver modern homes by bringing forward a viable scheme to allay developers’ fears about building homes in an uncertain market.