House building activity drops at sharpest rate since May 2020 as shown in the latest data from S&P Global / CIPS UK Construction PMI, which is worrying for industry and consumers alike as the country desperately needs new homes, says the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).
Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB said: “While the data reveals overall construction activity is on the rise, and access to materials is easing, the latest stats show the delivery of new homes continues to decline. It’s troubling that house building is the weakest-performing area within construction as the country is in the grips of a housing crisis, with smaller builders feeling the pinch on top of decline in their output over recent decades.”
Berry continued: “The FMB supports the Government’s plans to build more beautiful and locally sympathetic homes, but there is no clear plan for how this will happen. We need to see increased funding to local authority planning departments to help them take on and train more planning staff and a greatly simplified planning process to get homes out of planning purgatory”.
Notes to editors
The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) is the largest trade association in the UK construction industry representing thousands of firms in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Established in 1941 to protect the interests of small and medium-sized (SME) construction firms, the FMB is independent and non-profit making, lobbying for members’ interests at both the national and local level.
The FMB is a source of knowledge, professional advice and support for its members, providing a range of modern and relevant business building services to help them succeed. The FMB is committed to raising quality in the construction industry and offers a free Find a Builder service to consumers.
