Drop in rate of growth
for recent house building
New targets could still leave a shortfall

Gordon Brown has been accused of “spin” and a “lack of ambition and urgency” by Britain’s leading property organisation over the new house building targets he has set.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said that the prime minister’s plans to increase house building from 200,000 to 240,000 new homes a year by 2016 represented a drop in rate of growth of recent house building.

It said that the policy implied a growth rate of 3.7 per cent in the number of new homes built until 2016, down from the average of 5.2 per cent achieved over the past five years.

Separately, PwC, the professional services firm, said the prime minister’s new targets could still leave a shortfall of 240,000 homes relative to the projected rise in households over 2007-20.

This article is for your general information and use only and is not intended to address your particular requirements. Although endeavours have been made to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No individual or company should act upon such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of their particular situation. Budget 2007 information included in this article is subject to the Finance Bill becoming law. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

Article date: 07.07