On Thursday, Robert Jenrick, the Housing Minister of the United Kingdom, resigned from his post after just four months in office. The resignation comes as part of a major reshuffle of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet, which was announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak.
Jenrick was appointed Housing Minister in July 2020 and was tasked with tackling the UK’s housing crisis. He had promised to build 300,000 new homes a year by the mid-2020s and had been working on a number of initiatives to boost the country’s housing supply.
However, Jenrick’s tenure as Housing Minister was not without controversy. In October 2020, he was accused of giving preferential treatment to a property developer who had donated money to the Conservative Party. The incident prompted an investigation by the Cabinet Office and Jenrick was cleared of any wrongdoing.
The reshuffle of the cabinet has seen a number of high-profile ministers leave their posts, including Business Secretary Alok Sharma, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson, and Environment Secretary George Eustice.
Jenrick’s replacement as Housing Minister is Christopher Pincher, who has been appointed from the backbenches. Pincher has previously served as a minister in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and has a background in housing policy.
The reshuffle comes at a time when the UK’s housing market is facing significant challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic. House prices have fallen for the first time in eight years and there is a growing backlog of transactions that have been delayed due to the pandemic.
It remains to be seen whether Pincher will be able to tackle these issues and make progress on the government’s housing agenda. However, with the UK’s housing crisis showing no signs of abating, it is clear that the government needs to take urgent action to address the issue.