Redrow house builder boss blasts 'crazy' regulations

Fewer homes will soon be built in Wales because of increasing red tape and regulation, according to the boss of one of the biggest companies in Wales.

Redrow chairman Steve Morgan said the "crazy" introduction of sprinklers next year and social housing demands mean it is not viable to build in some areas.

The Welsh government said planning has been streamlined and councils are responsible for affordable housing.

More than 6,100 homes were completed in Wales last year, according to figures.

This was up on the previous year. The increase was fuelled partly by the Welsh government's Help to Buy scheme but Mr Morgan believes this will reduce.

He also said local authorities insist on 30% of developments having social housing.

And he claimed the introduction of sprinklers in new homes from January will make every property around £4,000 more expensive.

"There are whole swathes of Wales - north Wales and south Wales - where we can no longer get a return," he told BBC Wales.

Ministers have said Help to Buy will be extended but have not said when or for how long.

They also revealed figures which showed they had achieved 91% of their target to provide 10,000 additional affordable homes this Assembly term, with over a year to go.

A total of 2,218 affordable homes were built in Wales in 2014/15, bringing the total number provided since 2011 to 9,108.

Minister for Communities Lesley Griffiths said: "Boosting housing supply not only creates much-needed homes, but also provides jobs and training opportunities in the construction industry".

House builders criticise the planning process as being too lengthy and too slow and, they say, it costs a lot more to build in Wales compared to England because of extra red tape.

And houses sell for less in Wales than most parts of England so all this eats into profits.

Nevertheless, there has been signs of a turn around recently. Last year, the number of house building increased by a third to almost 5,000.

But Steve Morgan says we can expect that to drop soon, not least because of the extra cost of fitting sprinklers to all new properties.

The Welsh government says there are already planning measures coming into place with a new planning law that will allow a consistent approach across the councils.

They also say that 30% affordable housing is not a requirement from them as it's up to local councils to, ultimately, make that decision and that they do encourage them to be flexible.