The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has asked for a dedicated Secretary of State for Housing to tackle the growing crisis as demonstrated by the falling number of new homes being built and the failure to retrofit the existing 29 million homes in its General Election Manifesto, ‘Growth from the Ground Up’.
In addition to a dedicated Housing Minister, the FMB is also asking the government for the following:
Housing
- Introduce dedicated planning resources for small house builders in local authorities and set up developer forums.
- Unlock small sites by ensuring that provisions in the NPPF are being followed at local level.
- Create a new dedicated housing department with a Secretary of State for Housing.
Skills
- Produce a construction skills plan to set out a long-term delivery schedule for vocational skills.
- Set clear competence standards for retrofitting work to help guide current and future training provision.
- To work with industry to create clear training pathways for prospective builders, which will help professionalise the sector.
Energy Efficiency
- Introduce a long-term strategy mapping out the steps required to retrofit the UK’s existing homes.
- Develop industry and consumer incentives to kick start a thriving retrofit construction sector.
Standards
- To work with industry to introduce a licensing scheme for building firms and sole traders operating in the repair, maintenance and improvement (RMI) sector.
Business Resilience
- Introduce a national scrappage scheme to coincide with the rise of vehicle emission zones.
- Reduce VAT on RMI work to boost small builders and encourage consumers to improve their homes by making them more energy efficient.
Commenting on the demands, Brian Berry, chief executive of the FMB, said: “As we approach the General Election, the new government needs to address the growing housing crisis if it is to stimulate economic growth. Without an adequate supply of homes people can’t move freely, which stifles growth and opportunities. The FMB’s General Election manifesto calls on the new government to take urgent steps to boost house building rates; tackle the ongoing skills crisis in construction; support the rollout of energy efficiency upgrades to existing homes; and introduce a scheme to set a minimum competency level for builders.
“Housing delivery requires a competent and available workforce, which is why we’re calling for clear pathways into the building industry to help professionalise and boost the image of the industry so that a new generation of people can join the construction sector. The next government should also ensure that the building profession finally rids itself of cowboy builders. It’s not right that anyone can call themselves a builder without any minimum level of competence, therefore we want to see the new government to work with the industry to make this a reality.”
He concluded: “The FMB’s manifesto sets out a comprehensive set of policies that will help builders drive long-term growth. Helping to deliver positive change in our industry is crucial to delivering sustainable long-term economic growth for the UK. The FMB is showing that local builders, who are too often forgotten about by politicians, are part of the solution to creating a more dynamic country.”
