ROOF Blog

Applications to build houses across the UK rose in the last quarter of 2009, according to the NHBC. It said applications to build new homes between October and December 2009 rose 64 per cent from 15,879 to 26,078 compared with the same period in 2008. This was driven by the private sector, where applications surged 113 per cent, from 8,646 in the last quarter of 2008, to 18,393 in 2009. Public sector demand saw a six per cent rise, from 7,233 to 7,685. Imtiaz Farookhi, chief executive of the NHBC, said: ‘Our house building colleagues across the industry have shown cautious optimism as they reveal their predictions for 2010. Now the nation’s housebuilders need support from the government as they see their way out of this downturn and try to meet the need for new homes.’

Conservative councils are less likely to grant planning permission for new homes than other local authorities, according to research by McGrigors, the commercial law firm.

The gap is not large – 63 per cent of applications were approved by Tory-controlled councils compared with 69 per cent in authorities under Labour, Liberal or no overall control.

But given that the Conservatives control half of all councils with planning permission powers and are likely to make further gains in elections in May, the outlook could well be an even more severe housing shortage in the long-term, the law firm said.

On top of that, Conservative control is most heavily concentrated in the south-east where housing shortages are most acute.

Six of the 10 local planning authorities with the lowest approval rates, all below 45 per cent, were run by the Conservatives. They were Castle Point, Wycombe, Chiltern, Wokingham and Reigate and Banstead in the south east, and the Forest of Dean.