The National Housing Federation has recommended that government ring-fence £1 billion in Housing Corporation funding to enable its housing association members to buy up unsold private sector homes. The plan could benefit both sectors and could provide more than 10,000 social housing units, said the NHF. David Orr, chief executive of the NHF, commented: “The £1 billion could be used in a more innovative way to buy unsold stock, incomplete developments and land – at varying rates of discount.” Treasury and CLG officials are currently considering the proposal, which would see existing funding in the Corporation’s 2008-11 budget reallocated. It would add significantly to the £200 million prime minister Gordon Brown promised in April for private home acquisitions for the social sector, which was labelled a “drop in the ocean.” <br><br>That allocation would buy just 800 homes at today’s prices. The proposal would benefit developers, enabling them to shift units which have become difficult to sell in the downturn. It would also ease housing associations’ concerns that the slowdown in starts will impact heavily on social housing provision in the foreseeable future, since much of this depends on section 106 deals dependent on schemes going ahead. HBF executive chairman Stewart …