General election 2024: Political party manifestos in Northern Ireland

As the UK general election approaches, Northern Ireland's political parties have released their manifestos, outlining their positions on housing and related issues. While housing policy is devolved, UK-wide welfare and climate policies significantly impact it. Here’s a concise overview of each party's stance.

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)

The DUP calls for increased funding for Northern Ireland through revisions to the Barnett formula, advocating for a new needs-based factor and a transitional uplift.

They support inflation-linked benefit uprating, an "essential guarantee" in universal credit to cover basic essentials, and removing the two-child limit on universal credit for three- and four-child households.

Additionally, they propose a national database of public land to aid small construction businesses and address funding gaps for domestic abuse survivors, including migrant survivors affected by the "no recourse to public funds" policy.

Sinn Féin

Sinn Féin focuses on ending underfunding through multi-annual budgeting and enhanced fiscal powers, aiming to protect and expand public services.

They emphasise the need for a sustainable housing system within a broader vision for constitutional change and advocate for a fair and just transition to address climate change.

Their manifesto also includes a commitment to developing and implementing a strategy to end violence against women and girls.

Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP)

The SDLP emphasises the need for a comprehensive spending review to deliver a multi-year, costed public service recovery plan.

They advocate for a robust anti-poverty strategy and an essentials guarantee within universal credit.

On housing, they hold the minister for communities accountable for failing to build adequate social homes and emphasise the need for funding to address the housing crisis.

They also support ambitious climate legislation, focusing on a just transition, and propose streamlining the planning process to expedite housing developments and climate change adaptation projects.

Alliance Party

The Alliance Party stresses the importance of fair funding for Northern Ireland, advocating for a fiscal floor above the current UK government threshold.

They propose a UK-wide retrofitting program to reduce emissions and combat fuel poverty, funded by taxes on fossil fuel companies and the wealthy.

They seek comprehensive welfare reform, aiming to end punitive measures and ensure timely universal credit payments.

Additionally, they advocate for a not-for-profit asylum accommodation system integrated into communities and alongside social housing.

Ulster Unionist Party (UUP)

The UUP addresses the housing crisis by calling for collaborative policymaking to tackle rising property prices and rental costs.

They support an 82 per cent reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050, endorsing the UK's ten point plan for a green industrial revolution.

The UUP envisions Northern Ireland playing a pivotal role in this new industrial revolution, similar to its historical significance during the first industrial revolution.

As Northern Ireland heads into the general election, these manifestos reflect the distinct approaches of each party to housing, welfare and climate action, which will shape local governance and influence UK-wide policies affecting housing and connected societal issues.

Members can download our exclusive ‘what you need to know’ briefing which includes pledge headlines of all the UK’s political parties along with our analysis, reflecting on how they stack up against our manifesto asks.