Sales are booming in Scotland’s private housing sector, as illustrated in high-end builder Cala’s year-end numbers. What’s more, there remains a shortage of supply.

Builders talk up record performances, those listed are seeing impressive share performance, but beneath it rumbles a deep frustration with government and councils over planning delays.

Ultimately, while new houses are going up as fast as they can be, the total is not even close to enough. In total, only 251 more new homes were built in Scotland in 2016/17 compared to the previous year.

Cala goes as far as to say its impressive output, which was up 46 per cent, would have been “considerably higher” had it not encountered “some entirely avoidable issues” caused by “unnecessary delays” in the planning system.

There have been calls for the Scottish government to publish an overall housing target, to accompany its affordable housing target, but ministers are unlikely to want to be dazzled by a spotlight highlighting the number of new homes required to meet current demand, particularly given how  macroeconomic forces can alter patterns so abruptly.

The Scottish Government is currently undertaking a lengthy review of the planning system, which may yet give builders the acceleration required to meet their own targets, but those are likely to remain the only numbers to aim for.