What if the residents of a street could collectively decide to build more homes on it - and share directly in the benefits?
That's street votes. In our new paper with @labourtogether.bsky.social we set out how community-led street votes could help Steve Reed build 1.5 million new homes.
No!
Aha not a speaking tour but extremely sorry to have missed you
Excellent work to map rents/sqm. I find it particularly interesting how much more expensive 1-beds in London are per sqm than 3-beds (presumably driving up demand for HMOs) - but not in Wandsworth or Tower Hamlets, which have been building a lot recently
As a Christmas present to renters, we’ve build a new public zoomable map of rents per square metres in England and Wales! Have fun browsing and please share:
yimbyalliance.org/2025/12/18/h...
warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/econ...
‘Freedom is the by-product of economic surplus’ - Aneurin Bevan
Read the full article to see where else these ideas can unblock progress:
britishprogress.org/articles/the...
Across these examples, the lesson is clear:
🏆 Great outcomes depend on how markets are shaped, and how people interact with them.
💡Mechanism design offers a valuable toolkit for building systems where the right outcomes emerge by default, not by constant firefighting.
🏗️ In Houston, huge minimum lot sizes blocked more homes. Reform was hard, as homeowners feared change.
The solution? Let the residents that care most choose to opt out.
Most didn’t — so over 34,000 new homes got built. The default became progress.
That shifted when ballots were introduced: renewal projects now need majority support.
The game changed: developers had to convince people their tenures were safe. Since then over 30 ballots have passed, many with enormous ‘yes’ turnouts.
🏘️In London, estate renewal to build more homes was imposed from above.
Tenants didn’t trust developers and feared being forced away from their homes. This meant they fought, and often killed, projects that delivered more homes.
📈 These successes are well documented, but our research found many areas where mechanism‑design thinking is inspiring fresh policy ideas 👇
📍 Digital platforms
Before: platforms struggled to allocate scarce services in real time.
After: real‑time auctions and pricing enabled quick matching at massive scale on platforms like Google.
📡 Spectrum licensing
Before: opaque “beauty contests”.
After: well‑designed auctions prompted truthful bids and maximised public value.
🏫 School admissions (US)
Before: chaotic processes that lucky parents could game.
After: matching algorithms made it the best strategy for families to list true preferences, delivering fairer outcomes.
🏥 Kidney exchange
Before: thousands of willing donors couldn’t help their loved ones.
After: exchange cycles matched pairs efficiently, unlocking life‑saving transplants.
In policy we usually know the goal: shorter NHS waiting lists, more homes, faster green growth.
Mechanism design shows how to help get there: shaping the system to make the right thing EASY, DESIRABLE or the DEFAULT.
It’s already delivered big benefits in a range of cases…👇
Mission‑driven government needs more than ambition: we must rewrite the rules of the game.
Today for @britishprogress.bsky.social, Pedro and I show how mechanism design (‘ reverse game theory’) can help the Government shape markets, crowd in investment and deliver radical reform.
This is a must read for anyone who cares about building more homes and other infrastructure. Brilliant work by
@anyamartin.bsky.social
A fascinating and important paper showing how better state capacity (in this case justices of the peace) accelerated the Industrial Revolution. nofuturepast.wordpress.com/2025/05/13/j...
NEW: Government reforms just announced will slash the time to deliver infrastructure! These are big changes:
According to this story, the total cost of the Lower Thames Crossing will be £10bn, and £450m, or 4.5%, is planning - on.ft.com/4jeSUUK via @financialtimes.com
An anonymous source says the planning investment will lower the risk of overruns or unexpected costs.
🚨 We’re hiring!
If you're passionate about fixing the housing crisis and want real impact — whether through policy or campaigns — we want to hear from you.
Help us build a future with more homes for all 🏘️👇
NEW: we're looking to hire a Campaigns Officer! Do you know someone passionate about housing who would be a great fit? Please send them our way!
(link in next post)
NEW | Grey belt: the underestimated game-changer for housing
@johnrmyers.bsky.social, Director of YIMBY Alliance, outlines the homes already being unlocked by Labour’s new reforms to low-quality ‘grey belt’ land
redbrickblog.co.uk/2025/04/grey...
Average Home Size In US States vs Western European Countries
For size in sq Meters see: brilliantmaps.com/home-size...
This is an intriguing addition to the centre-left think tank space, with an impressively dynamic leadership - I will be interested to see the ideas they produce!
Cover of the essay Rediscovering British Progress available at https://britishprogress.org/articles/rediscovering-british-progress
💫 We’re launching the Centre for British Progress
Our founding essay: Rediscovering British Progress is a case for growth that drives shared progress, rooted in Britain's values and industrial heritage.
It all starts with a postcard from 1870 👇
britishprogress.org/articles/red...
NEW: the Office for Budget Responsibility estimates that the Government’s reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework will produce an extra 170,000 homes, raising GDP by 0.5%!