The new housing minister Lee Rowley has defended the government’s record on housebuilding, despite another sharp fall in the volume of new homes being built.

Overall, construction work registered a 45.5 mark last month, edging down from 45.6 in October, according to the S&P Global/ CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index.

November’s reading was the second-lowest since May 2020. A mark of above 50.0 indicates growth. But the survey points out that housebuilding, at 39.2, “remained by far the weakest-performing segment”.

However, Rowley told GBNews news that the government has made good progress when it comes to housebuilding, despite abolishing its long-standing target to be building 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s.

Rowley said: “We’re getting 240,000 houses a year being built but they’ve got to be built in the right places.”

“There’s always a balance in making sure that happens,” he continued. “So, we’re still building more houses, and we’re building the houses the country needs, but they’ve got to be built in the right places and we’re working with communities to do that.”

He went on: “The Conservatives have got a good track record in building houses. We built more houses in the last 13 years than under the Labour Party between 1997 and 2010. But the vital point is where people tell me in my constituency, we don’t mind more houses, we just want them in the right places.

“And so, we’re trying to work with local communities to ensure that happens and to make sure that when the houses are built, they work with a character or an area. They don’t just look like they’ve been dropped into an area no matter what. So, it’s about striking the right balance but we’re really clear.”

Rowley went on to the slam opposition political parties for hindering the government in its efforts to build even more new homes – although there are many that would not necessarily agree.

The MP added: “We need more houses and the Labour Party and others who have blocked the building of more houses through things like the nutrient neutrality rules just a few months ago in Parliament.

“They’ve got absolutely nothing to say on this. We’ve made progress and we’re committed to making more progress as a government. This is all part of our long term plan for housing.”

Planning consent for new homes falls sharply, with completions set to hit decade-low in 2024