Housing has rightly been identified as a flagship priority for the government since July last year. A series of pro-housing initiatives have been announced by ministers, the latest being the raft of new towns proposed during the recent Labour Party Conference. Yet, behind the ambition, local authorities’ ability to deliver against national housing targets is still not being properly leveraged. If the country is to build the 1.5 million homes the government wants, local leaders must be empowered to play their role to the fullest extent.