New house-building slows by 8% despite government target

Public demand for new-build homes seems to be in decline

Construction

The number of new homes started by builders between January and March is down 8% on the same period in 2017, a worry for a government which has pledged to increase housebuilding.

In the first quarter of this year, construction began on 39,350 new homes in England, says The Times. That is 8% fewer than the 42,740 homes started in the first quarter of 2017.

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