The government’s plans to build thousands of new homes could result in a glut of unnecessary housing, research by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) claims. The IPPR report comes after indepth study of the Barker report on the link between lack of housing supply and increasing house price inflation. Barker recommended that up to 141,000 new homes should be built annually. The IPPR report said: “The volatility of the housing market in the UK causes some concern periodically in relation to macroeconomic stability, but it is unclear that this has much to do with overall housing supply.” The report went on to say that the benefits of increasing private housing supply were unproven and the government should focus resources on building more affordable housing for which there is a clear demand. Housing economist Glen Bramley, cited by the IPPR, concluded that only 59,000 new homes were needed to affect house prices. (Guardian)