Taylor Wimpey quits London housebuilding as chief executive warns viability is 'fundamentally broken'

From the Newshound archive · first published 8 October 2026 · last updated 9 October 2026.

Taylor Wimpey chief executive Jennie Daly has declared that the company will launch no further housing developments in London, saying the economics have made the capital unviable for new schemes. Daly cited soaring construction costs, planning burdens, safety regulations and a collapse in international investment as the reasons returns no longer justify the risks. The bombshell withdrawal by one of Britain's biggest housebuilders deals a severe blow to efforts to ease London's deepening housing crisis.

Housing construction starts across London have already collapsed to just 6,325 homes annually — a fraction of the 88,000 needed each year.

Daly singled out the post-Grenfell rule requiring a second staircase in all residential towers above 18 metres as among the cost-driving policies that have made schemes undeliverable.

Taylor Wimpey's full-year 2025 profits plunged 54.3% to £146.5m, hammered by £222.2m in cladding fire safety remediation costs.