More houses being built
15/05/2014
There has been a drastic increase in the number of houses that have started being built in the UK, new government figures have revealed.
In comparison with April 2013, when the ‘Help to Buy’ scheme first started, there has been a 31% increase in the number of new houses that have started the building process.
However, the number of houses that have been completed has only increased by 4% over the same period, indicating that the ‘Help to Buy’ scheme has had a delayed effect.
These figures were praised by the Communities Secretary, Eric Pickles, who said: “Today's figures show we're turning this around, with Help to Buy not only helping aspiring homeowners but also leading to a resurgence in house-building."
“Need to build more homes”
Campbell Robb, Chief Executive of housing charity, Shelter, argued that more homes need to be built, and that the ‘Help to Buy’ scheme was not necessarily the solution.
He said: "Everyone agrees that we need to build more homes, but sticking plaster solutions like Help to Buy, or tweaks to planning rules will never tackle the hole in our housing market."
When figures are adjusted on a seasonal basis, the number of house completions fell gradually over the last six months.
According to the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG), house completions fell by 3% in both the last quarter of 2013 and the first quarter of 2014.
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