‘Downright offensive’: Southwark council slammed for blocking 900 homes Property Southwark council has been blasted for celebrating the blocking of an 867-home development on the site of a Peckham shopping centre. The local authority hailed a “great day for Peckham” after housebuilder Berkeley failed to overturn a ruling against the development, which would have delivered retail, leisure and commercial space alongside the hundreds of homes. [...]
Councils turn to AI to boost housebuilding Property Local councils across the country are turning to artificial intelligence to speed up the planning process, as Labour’s 1.5m housebuilding target clashes with a slowing construction sector. A number of local authorities – including several in the capital – have either piloted or implemented AI planning tools, but housing leaders have warned that the government [...]
Vistry shares plummet as housebuilder pauses buyback and warns on inflation Property Shares in leading housebuilder Vistry have plummeted on Wednesday’s market open, after it warned of a “significant” profit hit and said the Iran war is spiking building costs. The housebuilding firm was the biggest faller on the FTSE 250 as its share price fell 11.5 per cent to 288p, leaving the stock down more than [...]
Construction output tumbles as builders hit by surging costs and red tape May 7, 2026 The UK’s construction sector suffered a sharp fall in activity last month, as the Iran war batters confidence and drives up prices. S&P Global’s monthly construction index for the UK dropped to 39.7 in April, down from 45.6 in March. Builders are beginning to suffer from rising material costs caused by the blockage to the [...]
MJ Gleeson warns building cost inflation prompting ‘high caution’ May 1, 2026 Housebuilder MJ Gleeson has sounded the alarm over building cost inflation, prompting “higher than usual caution” over its finances. The London-listed firm said on Friday: “We have recently seen some softening in footfall and reservations, and limited increases in the cost of some materials.” The effective blockade to the Strait of Hormuz caused by the [...]
Delay fuel duty hike or risk stalling major transport projects, Labour warned May 1, 2026 The government risks stalling key road and rail infrastructure projects unless it extends the freeze to fuel duty, a leading construction industry body has warned. The Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA), which represents more than 2,000 firms providing construction machinery and expertise, told City AM “nothing will get built” if its members pull back from projects [...]
‘Entirely avoidable’: Build-to-rent housebuilding slows as London planning wait doubles April 15, 2026 The construction of build-to-rent homes in Britain is in danger of grinding to a halt as the planning wait for London homes has almost doubled in this decade. The number of build-to-rent homes under construction has fallen for the ninth consecutive quarter, according to data shared exclusively with City AM. The government has pledged to [...]
Family-run construction firms pushed ‘to brink’ by inheritance tax April 1, 2026 Family-run construction firms are being pushed to the brink of insolvency by reforms to inheritance tax which undermine Labour’s housebuilding target, a trade body has warned. Plant-hire firms – which provide machinery and services to the construction sector – are almost always family run and are being forced to scale back by inheritance tax changes, [...]
Tradesmen hand condoms to politicians in paternity campaign March 8, 2026 Construction workers will descend on Westminster to hand out condoms to MPs as part of a campaign for paternity leave for the self-employed. Tradesmen from across the UK will be dishing out the condoms branded with “this lasts longer than our paternity leave” to draw attention to their cause. Self-employed fathers do not get any [...]
UK construction ‘exits tailspin’ but job losses persist as housebuilding slumps February 5, 2026 The UK’s struggling construction sector showed signs it was turning a corner at the beginning of the year even as job losses and shrinking order books persisted. The latest construction Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) from S&P Global – which serves as a headline index tracking industry activity – edged up to 46.4, up from 40.1 [...]