Government housebuilding ambitions labelled ‘a pipedream’

Government plans to build 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s were described as a “pipedream” after new figures revealed the number of housing starts in England in the first three months of 2019 fell 9% year-on-year.

According to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, new-build dwelling starts in England were figured to be around 36,630, also down 9% quarter-on-quarter.

Completions were estimated at 42,870, 1% down on the previous quarter but 14% higher than a year ago.

All starts in the first quarter of 2019 were 25% below the 2007 peak, when they were just shy of 50,000.

Private sector housing starts in the March quarter fell 7% from the previous quarter, while completions were unchanged. Starts by housing associations were 8% down, quarter-on-quarter, with completions down 5%.

Clive Docwra, managing director of construction consulting and design agency McBains, said the latest figures showed the government’s target of building 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s would remain a pipedream until ministers introduced effective measures to boost the number of new-build starts and completions.

“Even though the annual figures show an increase in starts and completions of new homes, these are nowhere near enough to meet the demand for housing. Independent estimates suggest that more than 300,000 new homes need to be built each year until 2031, so the government’s figures prove that the housing crisis is still miles away from being solved,” Docwra said.

And Joseph Daniels, founder of modular homes manufacturer Project Etopia, said the figures showed that the response to the housing crisis had been ineffective.

“The structural problems of the UK’s housing market and the industry’s timid reply are still painfully obvious, even after £10n of public money has been thrown at it in the form of the Help to Buy scheme.

“For all the talk about the government setting ambitious housing targets, there is still a lack of urgency when it comes to walking the walk.

“Housing is in a state of crisis, yet the response has not reflected how high a priority housebuilding needs to be in the UK. The UK needs a revolution in housebuilding, not a peaceful protest.”