Private housing new work increased by 5.5% in November compared to the previous month as an easing of material shortages and unseasonably mild and dry weather put boosters under the sector.

New ONS figures show the wider construction sector saw the highest levels of output since September 2019, with a 3.5% month-on-month rise reaching 1.3% above the levels seen in February 2020 just before the onset of the first covid lockdown.

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