Radical overhaul required....?

https://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/lords-select/science-and-technology-committee/news-parliament-2017/off-site-manufacture-construction-report-published/

'Construction sector needs overhaul to meet housing and infrastructure needs'

The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee report 'Off-site manufacture for construction: Building for change' states that the construction sector as it currently operates cannot meet the UK's need for housing and may struggle to meet the need for infrastructure. Given that the UK already lags behind other countries in construction productivity, and is facing a labour shortage, the Government and the construction sector must urgently find solutions.

So what? The Government patently doesn't understand how the market works.

Housebuilders buy land, to build houses. They do not however build houses in the hope that they might sell them. They are risk adverse and will spend a great deal of time and effort properly assessing the local demand, socio economic factors, site layout, site composition (social versus private housing), the relevant 'Local Plan', future and local capacity within the area and the population, and may decide that a site should be 'held' rather than go into construction. Moreover, lenders are at the centre of this - until such time as the mainstream mortgage providers are willing to lend on system-built housing (most will not), this debate is going nowhere. Whilst lenders are stuck in the 25 year mortgage 'bricks and mortar' safety net, mass production is out of the question - compounded by the wider housing market - would you buy a system built house with unproven longevity (albeit most will last much longer than the mortgage term) and an uncertain resale value? Nope....

Come on Whitehall - the answer is not mass production (with all of the consequent damage to the environment and additional demand on the already failing infrastructure) but a change in the legal and regulatory framework to free up the finance and mortgage structures to support new building methods and assist first time buyers.