The boss of one of the country’s largest housebuilders has said the number of homes being built each year is on course to more than halve over the next three years, as the scrapping of annual housing targets has created a culture of “saying no” within local authorities.
Rob Perrins, chief executive of Berkeley, said the impact of the rapid rise in borrowing costs in reducing demand was masking the true cause of the housing shortage. “What’s going to really reduce numbers, even if there’s an economic recovery, is the planning and regulatory environment,” he said.
The number of homes being built was on track to fall to 100,000 a year by 2026, from 210,000 over the 12 months to the end of March, he
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