Shelter calls for £8bn for house building industry

Shelter has said there would be huge benefits for the economy if ministers invested money into building much-needed homes over the next year.

Ministers have already set aside £8bn to be spent over the next three years to build more than 100,000 social homes.

However Shelter chief executive Adam Sampson says there would be huge benefits for the economy if ministers spent the majority of the cash building the much-needed homes over the next year.

The Communities and Local Government House Building figures, released yesterday reveals that the government is falling behind in meeting its ambitious house-building target of three million new homes by 2020.

The number of homes being built in the West Midlands has declined sharply in the last three months with only 3,380 new homes built, a drop of 13% from the previous quarter.

The West Midlands currently has a target to deliver 18,280 homes per year, of which 6,000 will be affordable homes.

Shelter has now warned that the Government could be 800,000 short of its three million home building target for 2020. The figure is based on the average house building growth rate for the last three years.

Adam Sampson said: "These figures show that if house building continues at this slow pace the Government will not meet its target to build 70,000 affordable homes per year over the next three years, and will fall way behind on its three million homes by 2020 pledge."

"Spending this £8bn now rather than over three years makes perfect economic sense. It would give the house building industry a huge boost, would save thousands of jobs in the industry, help the economy and allow the Government to meet its social house building targets."