16
Apr
Help housing with range of measures, Darling urged
The property sector should be helped to recover through a wide
range of measures that could be introduced in the Budget, the
Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has argued.
FMB policy manager Peter O'Connell said that the introduction of
council tax rebates for those refurbishing empty homes could help
bring some of the 943,000 residences lying idle in the UK back into
use.
Lowering the cost of VAT for renovation work to five per cent could
also help achieve this aim, he suggested.
Mr O'Connell said action to improve lending to businesses is also
required, as this would support small construction firms, as well
as reforms of stamp duty to encourage first-time buyers.
Last month the National Housing Federation warned that
housebuilding was on course to fall to 70,000 in the current
financial year, the lowest number since 1921.
