New Report: “Election 2024: Housebuilding and Construction”
Cratus’ latest report – “Election 2024: Housebuilding and Construction” – sets out some surprises in the UK’s appetite for housebuilding, construction and investment in infrastructure.
In polling of 1,500 UK adults, carried out by Focaldata on behalf of Cratus, half of UK adults would vote for a political party that prioritised investment in transport, housing and energy infrastructure, and the majority (57%) would back future development on the Green Belt, if it were “limited to brownfield sites, or sites where buildings previously existed”.
This latest polling and research by Cratus will come as good news for the housebuilding and construction industries – there is real appetite to get Britain building, and to invest in the UK’s future infrastructure.
Commenting on the report, Managing Director of Advocacy, Jennifer Riddell Carpenter, said: “The voice of NIMBYs can often feel loud, but this latest research shows that people want more investment and will support development in the right context. Most importantly for each of the political parties – our research shows that people will vote with their feet on these issues, and there is willingness to vote for those parties that priorities investment in housing and infrastructure.”
Cratus’ report highlights four key themes:
- Building on the Green Belt – support does exist for appropriate building
In good news for Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer, who has publicly stated that a Labour Government would support building on Green Belt land “where appropriate” – the research shows that over half of UK adults polled (57%) would support development on the Green Belt if it were “limited to brownfield sites, or sites where buildings previously existed”, and only 17% would oppose it. In London, where land continues to be an issue and house prices remain out of touch for many, that support jumps up significantly. - The Conservatives aren’t seen as the protectors of the Green Belt
Despite their verbal commitments to the Green Belt, the Conservative Party come in third as the Party most likely to protect the Green Belt. Overall – the Green Party came out on top, with 44% of UK adults polled feeling that they were most likely to act to protect the Green Belt. - UK adults will vote for a party that invests in transport, housing and infrastructure
Across the UK, half of all adults polled (50%) said they would be more likely to vote for a political party that prioritised investment in transport, housing and energy infrastructure. But this could be a bigger issue in battleground seats. In key red wall regions such as the Midlands, more than half of adults polled would vote for a party that prioritised investment in transport, housing and energy infrastructure. - Labour is ahead in the battle for infrastructure
The Labour Party is ahead of the Conservative Party in the battle to be seen as the party most likely to invest more in infrastructure – with 41% of UK adults polled feeling that the Labour Party would most likely prioritise investment in transport, housing and energy infrastructure, compared to just 26% of UK adults who feel that the Conservative Party would be most likely to prioritise it. In Scotland, a key battle ground for Labour at the 2024 General Election, only one in five adults polled felt that the SNP would be the party most likely to prioritise investment in transport, housing and energy infrastructure, while over two thirds of Scottish adults felt Labour would prioritise investment in infrastructure.
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