Louis Armstrong, chief executive of RICS, said: "The long decline in social housing construction has caused an acute shortage, which the government needs urgently to address.
"To bring the UK's social housing stock into line with that of, say, France or Germany, would require a massive uplift in construction. It is unlikely that the UK's system of land assembly, infrastructure provision and construction could make a quick impact. Improved management of the existing stock, will also be especially important in the short term.
"Planning Gain Supplement, as proposed, will not work, and the current uncertainty around the future taxation of development is not creating a climate conducive to investment.
"Government should take the opportunity of housing expansion to create more sustainable communities by mixing tenures and linking the provision of jobs, homes, services and public transport."
