New home planning approvals in England fall to lowest level in a decade

Exclusive: Housebuilders blame decline on former government's decision to end binding targets for local authorities

Planning approvals for new houses in England have dropped to a 10-year low, according to new figures that underline how difficult it will be for Labour to hit its target of building 300,000 homes a year.

The data, from the Home Builders Federation (HBF), shows the number of new houses being approved is just over half what it was three years ago, having fallen to a level not seen since 2014.