Experts have cautioned that when regulations governing house additions are loosened, Labour's planning changes may result in a surge of "ugly" loft conversions.
Angela Rayner intends to prevent councils from rejecting loft extensions on the grounds that they are excessively tall or because they are not present in nearby homes.
According to the Deputy Prime Minister, a revision to planning legislation will make it easier for homeowners to add more stories in an attempt to alleviate the "acute housing crisis."
It comes as Labour vows to implement sweeping reforms that will allow builders to sidestep council planning committees in some cases.
Ms Rayner told The Times: “We are serious about delivering for the British people and streamlining the planning process, and speeding up building is a fundamental part of our plan for change.
“We are in the grip of an acute housing crisis. Expanding existing homes and building up is a great way to create more living space and will help us get Britain building as well as to meet our 1.5 million homes target.”
Rules introduced by the previous Conservative government that favoured only one type of loft development – known as mansard roofs – will be widened to include all forms of upward extension.
But experts warned the relaxed rules could trigger neighbourhood rows with “ugly roof” extensions.
A requirement that roof extensions are not taller than surrounding buildings and “consistent with prevailing the prevailing height” of a street has also been dropped in the Government’s plans.
Extensions will still be required to mimic the “form” of the neighbourhood and the “overall street scene” in addition to being “well designed”, officials have said.
Henry Pryor, an independent housebuying agent, said the new rules around roof extensions would “enable ageing housing stock to develop and change so people don’t have to move so often.
“It makes use of the existing space we have and will mean we only build on greenfields when and where we have to,” he added.
But Sam Hughes, of the Centre for Policy Studies think tank, said: “You never quite know what will happen with these things until they happen in practice because the language is so vague.
“It probably will lead to what in the eyes of some people are ugly roof extensions, and people won’t want to see glass boxes going up on Victorian streets.
“I am very concerned about it. We suggested in our consultation response that they should include a requirement to match the style of the street and have a maximum of one additional storey.
“They may accidentally have bitten off more than they can chew with this and they might end up permitting lots of ugly roof extensions,” he added.
David Toogood, a chartered surveyor, added: “My initial reaction was that it was a good idea because what local authorities should have is a standard where it’s easy to do it to one design.
“But what I must avoid is the skyscape where you stand and look down the street and there are seven different styles in a very short street.
“There’s no consistency if you are allowed to do almost anything, with lots of different styles permitted. And if I put up two storeys and it puts your garden into shade, you are not going to like it very much.
“I can’t see that it does help the housing crisis. All it does is help those who already have houses or flats to extend their premises. It doesn’t necessarily add another unit to the stock,” he added.
Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to build 1.5 million new homes by 2029 across Britain in what would be the largest wave of housebuilding in a generation.
Critics have questioned whether local authorities will be capable of meeting the ambitious target.
Centre for Cities research predicts completions are to be at least 25pc short of the Prime Minister’s five-year promise.
Shortfalls will be biggest in major cities, with Greater London set to miss its target by 196,000 homes over five years – 60pc below its goal.
The Ministry of Housing was approached for comment.
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