The new building safety rules are “strangling” the UK’s housing supply, according to a survey of volume and SME housebuilders conducted by Knight Frank.
The firm’s latest Land Index & Housebuilder Survey found that more than 6,600 homes were stuck in regulatory limbo due to Gateway 2 bottlenecks and nearly half of survey respondents said that Gateway 2 checks were adding 12 months or more to their project timelines.
Oliver Knight, head of residential development research at Knight Frank, said: “These delays are directly impacting housing supply at a time when the government has set the industry extremely ambitious housebuilding targets. Progress is being made to address some of these issues – recent changes to the Building Safety Regulator’s leadership and processes announced by the government will hopefully ease the current blockages – but it’s unlikely to be an immediate fix.”
Charlie Hart, head of development land at Knight Frank, added: “Entrepreneurial developers build in our cities, where density and infrastructure constraints require them to be nimble and dynamic, yet over-regulation is stifling delivery. Developers understand what new homes buyers and renters want and need. Trust their judgment by setting the parameters to ensure safety, but allowing the flexibility to stimulate low-risk development that prioritises speed to market.”
