Philip Hogg, CEO, Homes for Scotland is correct in his reasons for the 40 per cent reduction in new-build housing levels since 2007 but he only describes part of the story. There are possibly at least five factors influencing this large-scale reduction :
• The planning system : It is slow with a negative attitude and is unresponsive and under-staffed. How about a "deemed approval" system unless the planning authority objects with good reason within a tight timescale ? Abolition of planning gain financial penalties and other restrictive agreements would ease the process too.
• Funding for developers: Having suffered over-exposure to this sector back in the boom times, most British banks quickly lose interest when words such as housing, property and construction are mentioned in loan negotiations. Some of the foreign banks seem to be more receptive.
• Skills shortages: Many fully trained and experienced tradesmen and construction professionals have been lost from the industry over the past seven years through company receiverships, down-sizing of firms, redundancies and early retirement. Training and apprenticeship schemes were early victims to cutbacks, but these need to be resurrected. Encouragement of additional skilled migrant labour into this country might help to ease the crisis.
* Bureaucracy and over-regulation: This ever-increasing phenomenon is almost frustrating the determined effort to build more houses. Apart from planning and building regulations it is now further burdened with ancillary controls requiring time, effort and cost to resolve, sometimes for no obvious benefit. Removal of all but the most essential regulations might encourage more activity.
• Public and private utilities: In the "good old days" before privatisation, developers were given a reasonable service, often at no charge (as future revenue income was used to subsidise the capital installation of local infrastructure) and usually via one point of contact. Now a multiplicity of departments, contractors and sub-contractors are involved, often not communicating properly with each other, with very long lead times, and each viewing profit as more important than customer service. These utilities seem answerable to no one and some are in a near-monopoly position. They need to be brought under control to provide a customer-orientated service to the housing and construction industry and all other users.
With some of these obstacles removed or reduced, more house-builders might be persuaded to take a more active part in the market, thus satisfying the Government’s ambitious targets for new housing completions over the next five years.
Robin M Brown,
46 Buchanan Street,
Milngavie.
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