Help to Buy boosts Aga sales

The government’s controversial Help to Buy scheme has been enabling young home buyers to get a foot on the property ladder since it was introduced in last year’s Budget.

It has already been credited for causing an increase in timber prices and a shortage of bricks, but now cooker firm Aga Rangemaster has said the scheme has boosted its profits.

“With nearly two thirds of our sales linked to UK consumer spending on the home, the housing market is of central importance to us,” said chief executive William McGrath in the Guardian.

“Since the housing crash of 2007-8, our sales have been running 30% below their peaks but from the middle of last year the tide turned in the housing market. We expect better trading in 2014 with current order rates up 6%, which is better than in the second half,” he added.