Iran war to drive up building costs, warns Travis Perkins boss March 17, 2026 The boss of the UK’s largest builders’ merchant has warned building costs are poised to rise as suppliers warn they are facing soaring energy costs. Gavin Slark, the new boss of Travis Perkins, said the conflict in the Middle East and the resulting spike of energy prices will force manufacturers to put up prices to [...]
Labour urged to revisit non-dom regime to revive London economy March 16, 2026 Business leaders have urged Labour to overturn its abolition of the “non-dom” tax regime to stem an “exodus” of high-net worth figures leaving the capital. Lobby group BusinessLDN has called on the government to create an “Office for Tax Competitiveness” to identify where the UK loses out on attracting investment and growth due to stricter [...]
Iran war ‘heavily’ affecting property confidence, developer says March 13, 2026 Property developer Berkeley Group has said the Iran war is “weighing heavily” on market confidence and could push up inflation. The FTSE 100 firm told shareholders on Friday: “The emerging situation in the Middle East is weighing heavily on risk sentiment and we await to see the impact of this on the market.” “While reaffirming [...]
Land development transparency plans ‘solve problem that doesn’t exist’ March 10, 2026 The government has been accused of offering a solution to “a problem that doesn’t exist” over an initiative requiring landowners to publicly declare options over land. The new policy, set to be unveiled by planning minister Matthew Pennycook on Monday, is intended to help small and medium-sized (SME) housebuilders by boosting transparency. The government hopes [...]
Persimmon: Housebuilder posts profit as property market ‘recovers’ March 10, 2026 Housebuilder Persimmon toasted rising profit and house completions, buoyed by a property market which it says is recovering from last year’s Budget slowdown. Persimmon notched rising profit before tax in the year to December 2025, up 11 per cent to £397m, and built 11,905 homes, up 12 per cent from the year before. Investors rewarded [...]
Taylor Wimpey profit halves as Budget impacts sales March 5, 2026 The UK’s third-largest house builder saw its profits halve last year due to the cost of fire safety regulations and a regulatory settlement with the competition watchdog. Taylor Wimpey’s profit plummeted by 54 per cent to £146.5m despite revenue growing by 13 per cent to £3.8bn, in the financial year to December 2025. The group [...]
Vistry: Housebuilder boss quits as output falls March 4, 2026 The boss of the UK’s second-biggest housebuilder has quit as the company battles with falling revenue and output caused by the uncertainty around last year’s November Budget. The news spooked investors as Vistry Group’s share price nosedived on Wednesday, down as much as 22 per cent to 490p. Vistry’s chief executive Greg Fitzgerald said he [...]
Construction recovery remains fragile amid high costs March 3, 2026 The construction sector is recovering but its growth remains fragile as developers contend with high wages, planning delays and labour shortages. The industry will grow over the next year due to major infrastructure projects but confidence in the housebuilding and commercial sectors remains shaken, according to a report by construction firm McBains shared exclusively with [...]
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 [...]
London house prices ‘need’ to fall amid supply increase, housing minister says January 30, 2026 House prices “probably need” to fall in London, the housing minister has said, after insisting that the government’s 1.5m home building target could still be met. Matthew Pennycook said Labour wants to encourage developers to compete on volume in order to ramp up housing supply and make homes more affordable. There are “people in London [...]