Brick tool users and other professionals involved in the construction of housing might be interested to know that the Home Builders Federation (HMF) has today called on the government to ensure that pre-election promises to build more homes become a reality.
The HBF said that the government's next task is to develop a policy that will make real changes to the industry.
It highlighted the importance of increasing mortgage lending, making more land available for development, cutting regulatory costs and encouraging first-time buyers into the market.
Grant Shapps' appointment as housing minister was welcomed by the HBF, which said his experience in dealing with the industry meant there would be a consistency in communication between the government and the sector.
Pre-election promises by the Conservative party to build more property must now be delivered, the federation said, but it disagreed with proposals by the Liberal Democrats to introduce VAT on new homes as it believed they would discourage first-time buyers from the market.
Figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government show that UK house prices were 9.7 per cent higher in March than they were at the same point the year before, but house building is at its lowest peacetime level since the early 1920s.
Written by Jude Whitehouse.
