“With political uncertainty diminishing, the time is right to focus on British housebuilding”
The last few years have been a rough ride, politically. We saw three general elections in four years (despite the Fixed Term Parliament Act going through in 2011), and a divided electorate meant that the resulting governments were often split down the middle. The reason was simple: Brexit. However, at the last general election in December 2019, things changed for the better, with Boris Johnson winning a landslide victory. Whatever you might think of Mr Johnson personally, there is no doubt that, with a majority government in place for at least the next five years, he can finally start to get things done.
Since the Prime Minister doesn’t have to worry about building cross-party support for his policies, he is in a position to move away from the politicking that has divided the UK and towards solving the country’s problems. One of those problems, which continues to loom large despite former (broken) promises from the Conservative Party is the housing crisis. This is an issue that the Prime Minister should be proactive on. Former Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron promised to build 200,000 new starter homes in Britain prior to his election in 2015. Years later, precisely zero have been constructed.
If and when Mr Johnson tackles this crisis, the timber trade should be front-and-centre in regards to the solution. Timber is a sustainable material, meaning the current government can use it to kill two birds (housing and environmental policy) with one stone. Further, it will stimulate the economy through jobs and trade. So, whoever you supported at the last election, and whatever you think about Brexit, we hope you can all agree on one thing: housing needs to be sorted, and timber should be a key part of the process!
If you’re looking for high quality timber to complete your building project, give Quercus a call on 0845 50 50 311.