Housing minister Matthew Pennycook has written to Torbay Council, challenging them on “concerns” he has about potential housing delivery shortfalls.

In an open letter from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), Pennycook highlighted the Torbay Local Plan 2025-2045.

This plan was published in November 2025 and a previous letter from Pennycook urged the council to organise an urgent Advisory Visit with the planning inspectorate to progress new housing in the region.

Pennycook has now written to councillor David Thomas amid concerns this plan appears to meet only 42% of the area’s local housing need, with a shortfall of up to 10,980 homes.

The minister is also “particularly concerned” that an up-to-date Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment has also not been published.

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Highlighting the secretary of state’s legal powers to intervene, Pennycook has officially called on Torbay Council to submit evidence as to why it has arrived at its current plan. 

“I am directing the Council under section 27(2)(b) of the 2004 Act to submit to me all available evidence base documents which inform your conclusion that only 42% of local housing need can be met through your emerging plan,” wrote Pennycook. 

“This should include an updated HELAA (including consideration of sites proposed in the most recent Call for Sites in 2025), along with any relevant studies the Council has commissioned on matters such as constraints, residential densities, impacts on National Landscape or other landscape impacts, and any housing-related topic papers that the Council has produced to date.”

Torbay Council has three weeks to comply with this directive.

The Labour government has made delivering 1.5 million new homes a key pledge and has become increasingly invested in the role of local councils.

This has seen the MHCLG increasingly write to councils and intervene in situations where there have been a lack of decisions around progressing housing delivery, or planning permission denials.

Pennycook signed off the letter with: “Whilst I hope that the council will continue to engage constructively with my department, I must be clear at this stage that I will not hesitate to take further action if this request is not complied with.”