One of the most important single groups of donors to the UK Conservative Party are housebuilders and construction-related firms, but that well of money is running dry because the party isn’t permitting them to build over the country as fast as they would like, a report claims.
Construction-related donations account for a fifth of the funding the governing Conservative Party, yet these big-ticket donors are allegedly now withholding cash because they feel the legislative influence they believed they were buying is not being delivered, according to an unusually frank report in London’s The Times.
Exploring the outrage felt by housebuilders and the allies that remain loyal to them within the Conservative Party, the article also underlines the extent to which the companies which make so much money out of the United Kingdom’s soaring population — pushed ever-upwards by Britain’s open borders — are furious about recent developments.
The Times reports:
Last year the government scrapped housebuilding targets in the face of a Conservative backbench rebellion… Housebuilding rates have dropped for five consecutive months since… The downturn has prompted outrage among developers. One Tory source said: “I think you might struggle to name a developer who is currently donating.”
Rob Boughton, the chief executive of Thakeham, one of the southeast’s leading developers, wrote on LinkedIn last month: “Shame on those MPs and the vocal minority they try to protect at the cost of so many.”
Housebuilding boss Broughton has also called those opposed to even greater housebuilding “These small-minded, selfish people”. In some cases, the language is even stronger, with the founder of another major homebuilder referring to “grey-haired cronies”.
A Conservative source cited by the paper appears to strongly imply a transactional relationship between the housebuilders and the ruling party, as they expressed anger at the paymasters not getting what they wanted. They are reported to have said: “They [the developer donors] are on strike. And is it any surprise? What a way to spit in their f***ing face.”
This level of animosity towards people who are not fully signed up to the idea of building as much as possible is not new. As previously reported, opponents of building on Britain’s countryside and those who believe in the rights of communities to reject new development in their areas have been dismissed as “evil”, “wicked” individuals who “spit in the face” of others.
While slowing housebuilding will likely have an impact of pushing up house prices and rents — bad news for young people, and for the Conservative Party which not just enjoys the donor cash but also the political support of the home-owning class — it is not, despite the claims of some, the only means to control the price mechanism of supply and demand. As reported this week, historic levels of immigration is placing an “unbearable” strain on the housing market, as — despite the claims of some — soaring demand does have an impact on price.
Per yesterday’s report:
Over the past near-30 years — since the gates of mass migration were opened by Tony Blair and intensified under successive Tory governments — wages have all but flatlined, with the median income only increasing by £90 in real terms per week since 1997.
During the same time frame, the average price of a house in the UK soared from £130,499 in 1997 to £269,242 in 2022 when adjusted for inflation, according to the real estate site AllAgents, meaning that while housing costs have jumped by 106 per cent, wages have only increased by 16 per cent, effectively pricing out millions from getting onto the property ladder.
In comments made to Breitbart London, Mike Jones, Executive Director of Migration Watch UK said: “Britain does not ‘need’ mass immigration. It has a rapidly-rising population of 67 million people, and considerable reserves of unused labour. In a densely populated country like ours, population growth is putting unbearable pressure on public services, placing huge demands on scarce land and housing.”
“Ultimately, it’s the British taxpayer who bears the burden: through higher taxes, longer waiting times and choking congestion. And yet the government has been encouraging more and more migration. People have come to the end of their tether; and that is why we have launched our petition urging the government to reduce net migration to less than 100,000 per year, it’s their chance to make their voice heard.”
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