National Housing Federation says planning authorities in England have failed to meet housebuilding targets by nearly a third

The housing crisis will intensify because not enough homes are being built, according to figures published by the National Housing Federation (NHF).

They reveal that planning authorities in England have failed to meet housebuilding targets set by local government to relieve the housing shortage. The figures show that London missed its target by nearly a third - only 142,000 homes were built out of 210,000 homes needed between 2002 and 2009. Some regions fell short by as much as 50% in 2008/2009 and every region has fallen short since 2002.

David Orr, chief executive of the NHF, said: “The depressing results of our research show that too few homes were being built in every single region even during the boom years, and urgent action is required to get housebuilding back on track.”

A record 4.5m people are on housing waiting lists and more than 2.5m are living in overcrowded conditions.

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