Danny Alexander, the (Lib. Dem.)chief secretary to the Treasury, has set out proposals for the Government to directly commission the building of houses on state-owned land. Under the plans, the Homes and Community Agency would oversee a master plan for the site and commission thousands of homes, a small number of which would be affordable. Mr Alexander offered Northstowe in Cambridgeshire as an example, with 10,000 homes earmarked for the former RAF base. He also warned developers: “If you don’t build them, we will”.