Mineral shortages threaten UK homebuilding as planning system fails to keep pace

The UK homebuilding sector is on the brink of crisis as essential materials like sand, gravel, and crushed rock become increasingly scarce.

This is according to experts at the Mineral Products Association (MPA) who say these minerals, crucial for building a house and other construction projects, are running low due to a slow and outdated mineral planning system.

A report from the MPA warns that the supply of permitted mineral reserves is not keeping pace with demand and that without urgent reforms to speed up planning approvals, they warn there will be rising costs, project delays and potential material shortages.

Mineral planning system labelled as 'broken'

The latest report from the MPA has revealed alarming concerns about the dwindling supply of permitted mineral reserves in the UK.

Despite Britain being almost entirely self-sufficient in meeting the demand for 250 million tonnes of construction materials annually – 30% of which comes from recycled or secondary sources – the MPA warns that the rate of consumption is outstripping the approval of new quarrying permits, endangering the future of the homebuilding sector.

The report states that for more than a decade, the approval rate for new quarries has failed to keep pace with the country’s mineral consumption.

Between 2014 and 2023, for every 100 tonnes of sand and gravel used in Great Britain, only 61 tonnes of new planning permissions have been granted. The situation is even more dire for crushed rock, with only 33 tonnes of crushed rock being permitted for extraction for every 100 tonnes consumed.

This mismatch between supply and demand is largely attributed to a “broken” mineral planning system that prioritises local interests over national needs. Planning delays are now threatening key industries, especially homebuilding and infrastructure, which heavily rely on a stable supply of aggregates like sand, gravel and crushed rock.

Why this matters for homebuilding

The homebuilding sector, which is at the heart of the Government’s ambitions to tackle the housing crisis, is especially vulnerable to these mineral shortages. Sand, gravel, and crushed rock are crucial raw materials used in constructing homes.

If mineral supply cannot meet demand, building material prices will rise and project delays could become the norm, hindering the Government's goal of increasing housing stock across the country.

Regions that have traditionally been key suppliers of these minerals, such as the East Midlands and the Southwest, have reported significant shortfalls.

For example, in the Southeast of England, the report shows three times the volume of new reserves for sand and gravel has been consumed compared to new permits granted, and in the East Midlands, sales of crushed rock were 18 times higher than the volume of new permissions.

'Maintaining future supply will be exacerbated' without planning reforms

According to the MPA’s Annual Mineral Planning Survey (AMPS), between 3.8 and 4.1 billion tonnes of aggregates will be required over the next decade to meet construction demands, but without reforms to streamline the mineral planning process, the supply of these materials is in jeopardy.

MPA Director of Economic Affairs, Aurelie Delannoy, emphasised the urgency of reform, stating: “Unless there are significant reforms to streamline mineral planning and permitting... these mineral reserves will not be fully replaced. That will not only impact the mineral products industry but also the UK construction industry and the wider economy.”

MPA Executive Director Mark Russell further highlighted the looming issue, warning, “The availability of essential minerals is fast approaching a cliff-edge. If the long-term trend of diminishing reserves... continues, it is inevitable that the tensions involved in maintaining future supply will be exacerbated.”

The MPA also raised environmental concerns, noting that insufficient domestic mineral extraction could lead to a reliance on imported materials, increasing the carbon footprint of the construction industry.

As planning approvals become more difficult, the MPA urges the government to prioritise mineral planning in its upcoming planning reforms to avoid further disruptions to construction and infrastructure projects.