How to defeat nimbyism: build more beautiful houses

THE GREAT debate about Theresa May’s government is whether it is a one-trick pony or a no-trick pony. Will it manage to shove a Brexit deal through Parliament or will it fall apart in the effort? Brexit has crowded out all its other ideas.

There is one odd exception to this otherwise dismal picture. James Brokenshire, hardly a man known for wacky thinking, has embraced a surprising new idea for dealing with one of Britain’s stickiest problems: entrenched opposition (particularly in the south-east) to building new houses. Mr Brokenshire, the housing secretary, argues that the way to tackle nimbyism is to pay more attention to what new houses look like and whether they are in keeping with their local environment. To this end he has created a “Building Better, Building Beautiful” commission and appointed Sir Roger Scruton, a philosopher and expert on aesthetics, to run it. Tom Tugendhat, a Tory MP, calls it “the biggest idea in housing policy since the sale of council houses under Margaret Thatcher”. It is certainly the most interesting.