Government 'should build 3m more homes'
The government should build a minimum of three million more homes by 2020, it has been suggested.According to the National Housing and Planning Advice Unit (NHPAU), big new-build property projects are needed over the long-term in order to alleviate demand.This recommendation exceeds the government's own 2020 target by around one million.NHPAU also said that the current property downturn - which has led to house price falls of 2.5 per cent a month, according to lender Halifax - should not deter ministers from going ahead with building the homes.The unit's chairman Stephen Nickell said: "This is about acting now in advance of the next upturn."While inevitably there is now a focus on the gloomy short-term prospects and some uncertainty arising from this, for the sake of communities and future generations it is vital that planners and decision makers keep an eye on the medium and long-term."
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