Master Builders call for VAT cuts on property renovations and repairs

As the Chancellor prepares to deliver his Budget next week, Trevor Abrahmsohn beseeches him to help a vital part of the property sector...

Housing Minister Brandon Lewis has promised to hand out £100m to small builders (who deliver 10-100 units a year) to "recognise and support their important role in keeping the country building."

"Real house prices have been broadly flat since 2009", according to the latest Economic Review from the Office of National Statistics, with the fall in resi construction being "similar in scale to previous…