The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) believes that the government needs to focus on bringing empty homes back onto the market.

The organisation said that government is failing to meet its housing target of three million new homes by 2020.

In addition, the FMB is concerned that the slowing housing market will mean these targets are even less likely to be reached.

"We''re not on course to build three million new homes [by 2020] and what the government should be thinking about is looking at empty homes in this country," said Brian Berry, director of external affairs at the FMB.

"We''ve got about 700,000 empty homes in England [and we need to] look at more creative ways to bring redundant buildings back into use because that is more sustainable than creating sustainable communities.

"We are not on target to build 240,000 new homes every year," he added.

Gordon Brown has promised that all new homes built from 2016 onwards will be carbon-neutral.