Organisations clash over land supply

Claims that the government's plans to increase land supply would not provide much assistance in lowering house prices have been criticised by the Home Builders Foundation (HBF) as 'missing the point'.

The Campaign for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) said last week that supply shortages came behind both mortgage costs and rising levels of wealth when considering the main drivers of the housing market, but the HBF believes that the campaign group misinterpreted the available data.

The CPRE had noted that the majority of local authorities have more than enough land to satisfy demand for at least ten years, a claim disputed by the HBF.

"CPRE's research compares apples with oranges. It wrongly assumes that because land is identified in Local Plans that it will automatically be developed. Simply identifying land does not build a single new home. What counts is a steady supply of land with planning permission that is viable for building new homes," advised chief executive Stewart Baseley.

"The only way that more homes can be built and the significant undersupply of housing reversed is by significantly increasing the amount of land with planning permissions for building," Mr Baseley added.

Last week the HBF said that "proactive" engagement with land supply issues by local authorities was needed if there was to be any progress made on the issue.


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