James Cleverly appointed as shadow housing secretary

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has made James Cleverly shadow housing secretary, bringing him back to the frontbench.

Cleverly was formerly home secretary during Rishi Sunak’s tenure as Prime Minister between November 2023 and July 2024.

According to They Work For You, Cleverly has consistently voted: for charging a market rent to high earners renting a council home; for phasing out secure tenancies for life; against landlords paying for the costs of building safety works; and against increasing stamp duty.

Nathan Emerson, chief executive at Propertymark, said: “We look forward to working with him in ensuring that the private rental sector sees a boost in the supply of affordable homes to meet growing demand levels and that moving forward, the market and any future legislative changes are fit for purpose and make the sector fairer for all.

“We also need to see policies that help continue to encourage the number of properties being built whilst protecting the ethos of Green Belt land and the wider environment in general, and continuous improvement to help reform the leasehold system.”

Cleverly’s opposite number will be housing secretary Angela Rayner.