PRIME Minister Gordon Brown has upped the ante, and announced that builders should increase the supply of dwellings from 200,000 to 240,000 by 2016.
But even if builders could meet that target, the affordability problem would not be solved. According to the government’s think-tank, the National Housing and Planning Advice Unit, the higher output would still see the next generation paying 10 times annual earnings for a roof over their heads.
House builders would struggle to meet the target set by the new Prime Minister. They were not overjoyed by Tony Blair’s proposal to increase annual output by 20,000 over last year’s number (183,000). So who is going to build the extra dwellings that Gordon Brown wants?
Some industry experts believe that New Providers are visible over the horizon, charging - like the US Cavalry - to the aid of families that need homes.
TEAM is a New Provider, and would welcome a new breed of entrepreneurs who were willing to innovate with methods of construction that eliminated the enormous waste that is traditional on building sites.
Other firms are likely candidates for boosting the total output of dwellings to somewhere near the record numbers achieved in the 1960s, when the industry delivered twice as many units as it is able to supply today. Japanese builders produce homes off conveyor belts! IKEA has shown imagination with its modular units. Timber-frame manufacturers have identified new ways to cut costs and prices.
But government should do more to help the New Providers. Obstacles - especially in the supply of land – need to be dismantled. Local authorities could be given more freedom to expand their housing stock, and the cosy circle of constructors who are favoured for the major public contracts could be broken up to give new-comers a chance.