Pro-development rhetoric is all very well but industry needs more detail

By Joey Gardiner2022-09-28T06:00:00

Without wider reform and sufficient resources, proposals for investment zones are unlikely to give the sector the long-term tonic it needs

Shares in housebuilders Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon have this week fallen 7-8% below the level they were at when Kwasi Kwarteng stood up to make his much heralded not-a-Budget announcement last Friday. This wiped about £600m off the value of those firms alone.

Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey are just two examples – on Monday all of the major housebuildrs fell well below where they opened on Friday morning, with investors clearly believing their medium-term prospects have been damaged by what the chancellor brought forward. And this is despite his statement including a series of planning reforms and tax breaks designed to stimulate growth – including a £1.6bn a year stamp duty change directly targeted to help homebuyers – and other dedicatedly pro-growth reforms.

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