'The importance of increasing housebuilding output to aid economic recovery and growth is obvious at a time when the UK needs all the help it can get'

Mike Burton, director at Metis Homes:

“More support is desperately needed for the housebuilding industry to enable us to build more homes, so it is disappointing to not see this being included in the Spring Budget. Simon Clarke, former housing minister, reportedly said that every 100,000 homes built in the UK adds 1% to GDP, so the importance of increasing housebuilding output to aid economic recovery and growth is obvious at a time when the UK needs all the help it can get. 

“The Home Builders Federation (HBF) recently reported that house building rates are set to fall to their lowest level in decades, due in a large part to planning policy changes and the impacts of government department intervention on environmental grounds. 93% of SME developers said that planning was the most significant barrier to growth, and I couldn’t agree more. This is an area which requires urgent focus from ministers to both benefit the economy and ensure that appropriate housing for generations to come is delivered.”