Building chief says UK will build 200,000 new homes for first time in a decade in 2017 despite Brexit warnings
Redrow chief exec John Tutte said record low interest rates and a competitive mortgage market had boosted demand
THE boss of Britain’s sixth-biggest house builder Redrow has declared 2017 the year the UK trade will demolish the 200,000 new homes barrier for the first time since 2008.
The firm’s chief executive John Tutte said: “Demand for new homes continues to outweigh supply.
“Record low interest rates, a competitive mortgage market and government incentives such as Help-to-Buy have boosted demand.”
His comments come despite warnings of a post-Brexit collapse in the housing market.
But, Mr Tutte cautioned the government must do more to support the industry if it is to build the one million new homes it says the nation needs by 2020.
“Family housing continues to be in short supply in some areas and red tape and a lack of planning resource in local authority departments remains the number one barrier to bringing more homes to market.”
He also urged Theresa May’s government to put a rocket under planning departments by publishing proposals in its forthcoming Housing White Paper to break the logjam at town halls.
And Mr Tutte warned both builders and the government most do more to plug the skills gap that blights the industry as Britain gears up to trigger Article 50 and quit the EU.
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“A drive for more homes must come hand-in-hand with a drive to recruit more workers.
“The Government must implement measures not only to retain the international talent already attracted to the UK, but also to support the sector to train and upskill the existing UK labour force.”
A recent government-backed study by industry veteran Mark Farmer argued that the construction sector was “in dire need of change” and must either “modernise or die”.
The Farmer report said the industry must move away from its labour-intensive model and embrace new technology.
In 2015, the wider construction and infrastructure sector added £90bn or 6.7 per cent of total GDP to the UK economy.
The sector is set to grow as Britain upgrades key infrastructure such as its road and rail networks and embarks on a massive home-building programme.