Around 150 construction jobs are to be created at a £180m east Belfast housing development.

Developer Lagan Homes said it plans to build 1,000 new properties on a 96 acre site in Dundonald.

It is expected 150 of the homes at Millmount will be completed by next summer.

Final planning approval is still required from Castlereagh council, however the application is believed to be at an advanced stage.

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The East Belfast MP, DUP Leader and Stormont First Minister, Peter Robinson said the scheme would provide a welcome boost to the local building sector.

Lagan Homes Managing Director Conor Mulligan said the timing of the land acquisition is "perfect".

"We will seize on these opportunities to both expand our portfolio and avail of the opportunity to deliver affordable family homes on what is one of the best sites in Belfast."

John Armstrong, Constructors Employers Federation head, said much-needed work would be open to engineers, bricklayers, electricians, fitters, roofers, tilers and countless other related businesses such as quarries and kitchen/window manufacturers.

(PR/BMcC)