Thank you Neil. I am delighted to be here today at the launch of Brookwood Farm. I very much wanted to be present for such an important step, for both our industry and one of our member companies. The HBF represents companies responsible for some 80% of the industry’s output, from large national firms to smaller more local firms such as William Lacey. In addition to being Chairman of HBF I also act as co chairman with the Housing Minister of the Zero Carbon Taskforce which was established to oversee the delivery of the Government’s target that all new homes should be zero carbon from 2016 – a target shared by the current and the previous administration. It is fair to say that the Government’s 2016 target is one of the most significant challenges facing the home building industry over the next few years – though it is most certainly not the only one. It’s remarkable just how far we have come in a short space of time. Four years ago the words Zero Carbon were not in our vocabulary. Today they are very much part of our language and politicians of all parties talk about the trajectory to a Low Carbon Economy and we have legally binding targets for an 80% reduction in emissions by 2050 with a significant first step by 2020. These are by any standards very demanding targets. The general and expert view is, however, that without these steps our chances of avoiding damaging climate change will be unacceptably low. So the built environment needs to play its part. Overall it is responsible for nearly half our carbon emissions, with the housing stock contributing 27% of national emissions. Whilst clearly most of this relates to homes that already exist – and all new homes are already of course many times more energy efficient than their predecessors of previous generations - we need to add a third to our housing stock by 2050. The standards to which new homes are built do therefore matter. As an industry we have a responsibility to act – but it is one we should also seek to ensure is an opportunity. It is a challenge our industry has met head on. And when you consider that the journey we have made has been in the midst of the most serious economic downturn our industry has experienced, getting from where we were four long years ago to where we are now is an absolutely incredible achievement for companies large and small. No matter what the size of the company, however, reducing CO2 emissions from homes by 100% - which is what Code level 5 requires – and what the homes you see here today have achieved – is a stretching objective for all our members. For a smaller firm like Laceys to do so – and produce the first such mainstream, and affordable, housing project in the UK is an incredible and welcome achievement. I think special credit should be given to Chris Lacey. He realised quickly that the best way for his company to move forward was to take on board the changing agenda and adapt. Today’s event demonstrates the success of both that approach and his leadership. I am also pleased that Brookwood Farm is a reflection of Laceys’ and Woking Borough Council’s ability to work closely together to deliver such a clearly positive result. With the new Government’s Localism agenda putting emphasis on Local Authorities determining their own housing requirements in their area, developing partnerships with house builders such as the one that has resulted in what we see here today, is going to be absolutely vital if they are going to deliver the homes their areas need. The Government has established the Code for Sustainable Homes to provide standards covering a wide rage of sustainability requirements – including water and energy efficiency. The provisions of the Code for energy efficiency are also being aligned with changes in the Building Regulations requirements for new homes in the period between now and 2016. It is very welcome to see therefore that here at Brookwood Farm, Laceys and Woking Borough Council have been so proactive in working out how to develop and deliver the Code level 5 homes you see here today. This experience should provide an excellent basis for other like minded developers and Local Authorities to understand the role that various design and technology solutions can play – and the benefits of a partnership in the true sense of the word between a Local Authority and a developer. Now the challenge of delivering the low carbon agenda by 2016 is not to be under estimated. These are, and are likely to remain, economically challenging times. And let’s be absolutely clear, the standards we are striving to reach will deliver the highest level of carbon efficiency for homes of any nation on earth. The cost of this has to be balanced against the long list of other demands being placed on the industry by national and local Government. Collectively these costs impact on viability and affordability and ultimately on housing supply in a country that desperately needs more homes. It simply can’t be right that about 25% of today’s 30 year olds are still living with Mum and Dad; that the average age of an unassisted first time buyer is now 37 and that 5 million people are on housing waiting lists. That’s why getting the definition of zero carbon right is so critical, and why we have been working hard to ensure it is practical and flexible. In that regard I am delighted that Neil Jefferson is here today – the zero carbon hub has played an incredibly important role in helping to shape the outcome of the debate in many areas, commissioning research and producing invaluable work to help us all understand the issues and hopefully reach the right conclusions. Ground breaking projects like the one we are here to celebrate, prove that all the issues we will face are surmountable. It proves that innovative thinking and collaborative working practices can deliver outstanding results. Brookwood Farm pushes the boundaries and will provide an excellent basis to understand the role that various design and technology solutions can play as we as an industry strive to meet the zero carbon challenge that we have been set. Well done to all involved. If there is one thing I have learnt in my many years in house building, it is that our industry has a unique ability to adapt to change and find a way to succeed. If we can combine that ability with the adaptability of forward thinking Local Authorities such as Woking, we will have a real chance of delivering the homes we know this country needs.
