Two of the building industry’s biggest trade organisations have called for greater funding to build new homes in the UK, in order to stimulate the economy and create new jobs for skilled builders.
The National Federation of Builders (NFB) and the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) issued a joint statement on the matter following group talks with the government and other organisations at last week’s Conservative Party Conference.
The meeting saw Local Government Association (LGA) vice chairman, Gary Porter, stating that the next round of quantitative easing needed to go through to local authorities in order to help them jump start local house building.
FMB chief executive, Brian Berry, said he welcomed the LGA’s take on the matter and the efforts that local authorities are taking to encourage building.
“It’s good to hear from the LGA and from our members that some local authorities are already renegotiating Section 106 agreements in order to help deliver more homes,” he said. “We want to see this flexibility replicated across all local authorities so that the local population can reap the economic and social benefits of new housing in the right places… Councils now need more opportunities to invest in helping builders build and buyers buy.”
NFB head, Julia Evans, added, “Local authorities are at the coalface of delivering the housing we need and they are used to working with smaller volume builders to develop smaller sites.
“A constructive dialogue between local authorities and local builders is key to getting us out of current predicament.”