Wimpey attacks planning logjam

GEORGE WIMPEY, Britain's biggest housebuilder, yesterday accused the government of pushing up land prices by failing to address the country's planning logjam.

Joe Dwyer (left), the group's chairman, said that delays in getting housing development approved by local authorities squeezed land housing supply, raising new home prices. He said that the government's failure to speed up the process was hurting consumers. "In a perverse way the government's inaction is having the effect of increasing house prices and especially new home prices," said Mr Dwyer.