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UK housebuilders have far too much power. Now a £4.5bn lawsuit could change that for good | Peter Apps

The Guardian UK Wednesday 08 July 2026, 07:00 UTC By Peter Apps 1 min read
Key Points

A legal case on behalf of some 700,000 people against the country’s biggest housebuilders could be a catalyst for much-needed industry reformEvery new government – at least for the past decade or so – has come into office with a promise to build more homes. New ministers don a hard hat, take a trip out to a recently completed development and smile indulgently as a bright young couple get given the keys to a smart-looking new-build. Then follows a speech about aspiration.

A legal case on behalf of some 700,000 people against the country’s biggest housebuilders could be a catalyst for much-needed industry reform

Every new government – at least for the past decade or so – has come into office with a promise to build more homes. New ministers don a hard hat, take a trip out to a recently completed development and smile indulgently as a bright young couple get given the keys to a smart-looking new-build. Then follows a speech about aspiration.

The unspoken truth will be that it is not up to the minister how many new homes are built in his or her term. Instead, this decision is mostly made in the boardrooms of the largest developers, who together control the land and resources to dominate the market in this country.

Peter Apps is the author of Show Me the Bodies: How We Let Grenfell Happen

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Originally published by The Guardian UK Read original →

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