Mortgage
debt passes £1 trillion for the first time; the
Bank of England has revealed that mortgage debt rose by £9.3billion
in April to take the total debt past £1 trillion for the first time.
When credits cards and bank loans are taken into the equation the level of
outstanding debt is £1.2 trillion – this is roughly equal to the
entire yearly output of the British economy. Experts reported that the level
of growth reflected a surge in house prices and it might not be a problem
as the value of houses and flats was rising faster. Fionnuala Fairley of Nationwide
Building Society said that mortgage payments for someone on average earnings
now take up 42 per cent of take-home pay compared to 32 per cent three years
ago. For
further information click here
Guardian 30.06.06
Revised data shows stronger economic growth; the annual revisions to economic growth made by the Office for National Statistics show that the economy has grown more strongly in each year since 2001 than previously thought and its composition is better balanced between the household and business sectors. This is thought to mean that there is less slack in the economy than previously thought thus increasing the pressure for an upward interest rate rise. However there is a sting in the tail for the public finances, which now appear much weaker than reported in the March Budget. A poll of 40 economists conducted by Reuters before the ONS news appeared shows that they expect the MPC to keep the rate at 4.5 per cent when they meet this week. For further information click here Financial Times 01.07.06
Pensions calculations ‘don’t add up’; the Pensions Policy Institute has expressed doubts about some of the calculations made in the recent government statement that the pension age would have to increase to 68 to enable the payment of a more generous state pension. The Institute says that the claim that the number of pensioners relying on means-tested benefits- the Pensions Credit and Savings Credit- will fall to a third by 2050, reversing current trends under which it might rise to as high as 70 per cent. The Institute says that the true figure may be between 40 and 50 per cent, which would make the pension rise unaffordable unless taxes rose or people worked even longer. For further information click here Times 01.07.06
Private sector employment rises faster; for the first time in six years employment in the private sector has risen faster than in the public sector. Figures released by the Office for National Statistics appear to mark the beginning of the end of the huge growth in public sector jobs since the government’s expansion of public service spending began in 2000. In the year ending March 2006 public sector employment grew by just 24,000 or 0.4 per cent whilst private sector employment grew by 260,000 or 1.1 per cent. The CBI said that the figures showed “a sign of progress towards the Gershon targets” under which there is a target of 84,000 civil service job cuts. On a like-for-like comparison civil service numbers were down by 15,000. For further information click here - Financial Times 01.07.06
Hedge fund backs Oxford spin out deal; Sloane Robinson, a London-based hedge fund, has announced that it has struck a deal to provide private equity funding and management expertise for stakes in companies spun out from Oxford University’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering. Sources in the London hedge fund community said that it would be the first of many such arrangements as other funds are exposed to small but potentially lucrative high-tech companies. The lack of venture capital in Britain for such spin-outs and the lack of management expertise have often been cited as stumbling blocks for academics seeking to commercialise their ideas. George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor, used a recent trip to California to raise the issue, which led to some controversy. According to Tony Raven of the University of Southampton, university spin-out companies that have made it on to market have on average shown solid performance as investments. In the past three years 26 such companies have floated, with a combined value at their initial offering, of £1.3bn. He says that companies have been greatly helped by the development of the Alternative Investment Market. John Fraser, President of the US Association of University Technology Managers, said that he had been greatly impressed by the willingness of the UK government to invest in the commercial exploitation of research (since 1997, the government has invested £500m in university technology transfer programmes). Fraser also praised the work of the IP Group, the intellectual property commercialisation group that pioneered the investment model adopted by Sloane Robinson. The IP Group has deals covering early-stage investment with seven universities. For more information click here Financial Times 29.06.06
Two more attacks on red tape; both the National Audit Office and the Small Business Council have issued critical reports of Whitehall’s failure to ensure that new regulations do not impose excessive costs on business. The Small Business Council use their annual report to claim that the government’s stated desire to cut the red tape burden was yet to make any real difference to most SMEs. They also publish a list of 32 recommendations for changes in small business policy. For further information about the UK National Audit Office click here - For further information about the Small Business Council click here Service Financial Times 01.07.06
Yet another bank remembers the high street; according to the Observer the news that Barclays are planning to revamp 2,000 branches only confirms what most of its rivals have discovered; the high street has regained its place at the front line in the battle for banking business. In the event the announcement that the Woolwich branches would be consolidated with nearby Barclays’ braches leading to the closure of up to 200 rather obscured the announcement. Whilst the use of the Internet has, if anything, grown more quickly than expected it has been for paying bills and checking balances and not, as bankers had hoped, for selling the loans, investments and insurance that are now the key to profitability. A survey of executives from 26 leading European banks by Forrester Research shows that selling, not service, is the key requirement for branches. However traditional bank branches, with their bullet-proof glass, queues and rather outdated décor, are not best suited to the hard sell and all the big chains are rethinking their design. James Fraser of LEK Consulting, says that the renewed focus on branches stems from the banks’ realisation that they are actually retailers of financial products and that they need an environment where they can sell to customers. He points out that the retail businesses of Barclays and Lloyds TSB are run by executives from American banks where branches are called stores. Deanna Oppenheimer, Chief Operating Officer of Barclays retail bank, was responsible for putting in play areas when she was with Washington Mutual whilst Terri Dial, previously at Wells Fargo and now at Lloyds TSB, is already allowing branches to decide their own opening hours. The Lloyds TSB branch at Waverley Station in Edinburgh now opens at 7.30am. For further information click here Times 29.06.06
Union claims staff are snubbing social enterprise; plans to transfer thousands of NHS staff into new free-standing social enterprises have received a set back as Unison claimed that staff at a Surrey primary care trust had voted against such a move. Unison claim that 84 per cent of district nurses, health visitors, therapists and others who were due to be transferred into a new business “Central Surrey Health” at the end of July had voted against the idea. The project is seen as a trailblazer with the Department of Health wanting primary care trusts to concentrate more on the commissioning of care, with staff to be supplied by new forms of social enterprise, independent contractors and free-standing foundation trusts. Under the Central Surrey plan, 800 staff would form a not-for-profit partnership, which would be at risk of profit or loss that would contract back the services they currently supply to GPs and patients. East Elmbridge and Mid Surrey primary care trust contended that only 40 per cent of staff had responded, and that this was due to a tick-box survey rather than a formal ballot. They acknowledged that there were concerns but were confident that all the problems would be resolved in time for Central Surrey Health to go live at the end of July. The situation became more confused when newspapers revealed that the Department of Health had prematurely posted details of a plan to seek tenders from multinational healthcare providers to manage primary care services such as procurement, financial management and human resources. Financial Times 28.06.06, Guardian 30.06.06
Business welcomes procurement database; professional contractors and small businesses have welcomed the launch of a new internet database listing more than 7,000 government procurement contracts. The supply2.gov.uk portal allows public sector organisations to publicise lower value contracts free of charge and provides one single point of contact for smaller businesses. For further information click here Financial Times 28.06.06
Takeovers ensure that UK is top for inward investment; a near trebling of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows in 2005 meant the UK became the top destination for foreign capital, even overtaking the USA in the latest OECD survey. Fuelled by mergers and takeovers the total inflows into the UK went up from $56.3bn in 2004 to $164.5bn in 2005, whilst the US figure went down from $133.2bn to $109.8bn in the same timescale. The UK figure was boosted by a number of overseas takeovers as well as the intricacies of the Royal Dutch Shell restructuring which meant that the transfer of its domicile to the Netherlands scored as a foreign investment. China was third with inflows increasing from $60.6bn in 2004 to £72.4bn in 2005, followed by France, which increased from $31.4bn to $63.5bn. The Shell transaction meant that the Netherlands tops the table for sources of investment followed by France, where French companies undertook a number of major takeovers including Pernod Ricard’s acquisition of Allied Domecq. For further information click here Times 29.06.06
New
cultural leaders needed; the Chancellor (pictured right
with Sir Christopher Frayling) officially launched the £12m Cultural
Leadership Programme, which he originally announced in the last budget. The
programme, which is aimed at promoting excellence in the management and leadership
of the cultural sector, will train about 2,000 people currently working in
the sector. At the launch Tessa Jowell, Secretary of State for Culture, said
that “in economic terms, the cultural sectors account for over 5 per
cent of the nation’s gross domestic product, and for the last decade
the sector has grown at twice the rate of the economy as a whole”.For
further information click here Financial Times 21.06.06
COMMUNITY
AND BUSINESS AFFAIRS
Investors and analysts want operating reviews;
a survey conducted for IR Magazine shows that more than three-quarters of
investors and analysts want companies to publish full Operating and Financial
Reviews (OFR) in spite of the government’s last-minute decision to scrap
the requirement. Announcing the Government U-turn last November, the Chancellor
said that it was a deregulatory move with the CBI attacking the cost of compliance
and Hermes, the Asset Manager of the BT pension scheme saying that OFRs were
“colossally over-engineered”. However, it emerged that the decision
had been taken after scant consultation with members of the Cabinet and has
been followed by what the FT says is “a policy-making saga punctuated
by government U-turns”. Mandatory OFRs have been replaced by looser
EU requirements to produce an annual business review. The IR survey finds
that 78 per cent of the 250 City professionals thought that companies should
publish a full OFR. A survey published in May by Radley Yeldar, a communications
consultancy, suggests that most companies are going beyond the basics of the
review but falling short of OFR requirements. For
further information click here Financial Times 26.06.06
Large companies donate £1.07bn to charity; the latest issue of Charity Trends says that Britain’s 500 largest companies contributed £1.07bn in cash and kind to charities in 2005 - a 15 per cent real increase on 2004. The number donating more than 1 per cent of their pre-tax profits also rose from 52 in 2003-04 to 57 in 2004-05. The largest corporate donor remained GlaxoSmithKline, who gave £380m - 5.6 per cent of their pre-tax profits. It was followed by Royal Bank of Scotland (£56.2m), BP (£55.6m), HSBC (£47.4m) and Barclays (£39.1m). In total private charitable donations from individuals, companies, legacies and trusts totaled £13bn last year- providing half of the income of the UK’s fundraising charities. However the report warns that whilst income for the largest 500 charities grew by 5 per cent, there has been a sharp decline for the others with charities in the bottom 100 showing a 12 per cent loss of income. For further information click here Financial Times 28.06.06, Independent 29.06.06
This golden age of philanthropy; one of the press stories mentioned in the last issue of Grapevine suggested that the decision by Bill Gates to concentrate on his charity work would trigger others to do the same has been proved correct. Warren Buffett (pictured right), the world’s second richest man, has decided to give away roughly two-thirds of his fortune to the charitable foundation administered by the one man on earth richer than he. Until now the assets of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation totaled $30bn. That figure will now double. Its assets of $60bn will be six times larger than the annual budget of the UN and will rival the GDP of Algeria. Rupert Cornwall, writing in the Independent, says that for social, historical and economic reasons, charity plays a role in the US unmatched anywhere else. Secular Europe, with its traditions of social democracy and higher taxation, looks to what Americans disdainfully refer to as Big Government to redistribute wealth and look to the basic needs of the less fortunate. The US, with its religious convictions, its ingrained suspicion of government intervention and its “help-thy-neighbour” ethos could hardly be more different. Charity giving is made easy and schools, churches, organisations of every hue, advertise themselves as communities to which you are expected to contribute. Gates and Buffett have accepted that there is a globally connected world in which opportunity is so unfairly divided between rich and poor that it is a cauldron waiting to explode. For further information click here Independent 28.06.06
Buffett leads the way to venture philanthropy; a feature article in the FT by Andrew Jack says that Warren Buffett’s decision suggests an endorsement of the alternative approach taken by the Gates Foundation towards what some have dubbed “venture” or “strategic” philanthropy. The practice is designed to bring some of the skills of business - or specifically venture capital-to charitable giving. Venture philanthropists actively seek out - and even create - organisations to receive funding in areas they judge useful. They place large “bets” on those projects regarded as effective and introduce business methods. Trevor Neilson, a former Gates Foundation staffer, says that they understand risk and reward are inextricably linked and they are not afraid of failure because they know that if one or two of the projects work they will change the course of history. Other bodies are adopting this method including Google.org, the foundation set up by the founders of the search engine and endowed with $1bn of funding. Financial Times 28.06.06
Venture
philanthropy in the UK; several newspapers examine what the
chances are of a British version of Warren Buffett. Philip Beresford, the
compiler of the Sunday Times Rich List, says that when he started the list
in 1989, only a quarter of the very wealthy were self-made millionaires but,
“it’s now almost the exact reverse. The bulk of today’s
super-rich are people with their feet on the ground, often from modest backgrounds
in which poverty was not an abstraction but something to be overcome”.
The total revenue generated by charitable trusts or donated by the 30 individuals
in the Sunday Times Giving Index topped £453m this year, up from £333m
in 2005. The country’s most generous philanthropist is Christopher Hohn
(pictured right), a 39-year-old hedge fund trader who gave away £50m
to children’s charities in the developing world. Britain’s new
philanthropists share with Buffett and Gates a mixture of impatience and business
acumen. Reluctant to sign away their money to traditional NGOs, they are adopting
a hard-nosed approach that insists on looking at the bottom line. Several
consultancies have been set up to aid this effort including the Institute
for Philanthropy, an offshoot of the Rockefeller Foundation, and New Philanthropy
Capital.
Sunday Times 02.07.06
Kelly
gives support to city regions; Ruth Kelly (pictured right),
the new Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, has come
out firmly in favour of mayors running new city regions in England, with powers
matching those of the Mayor of London. Speaking to the core cities summit
in Bristol she gave her personal backing to the idea of strong accountable
leaders in a string of city regions. While she did not advocate any single
model she hinted that the greater the powers vested in the city regions the
greater the need for a directly elected, locally accountable leader. Local
government leaders have traditionally shown reluctance either to embrace the
idea of city regions or mayors although some have recently been showing some
enthusiasm for the concept. The government became interested in the idea of
city regions after the collapse of the idea of regional assemblies following
the no vote in the north east. Potential functions of the city regions include
transport, employment, innovation, creativity and culture, and sustainable
and cohesive communities. The eight core cities are Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds,
Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield.
For
further information click here Guardian 26.06.06
Moscow now Europe’s most expensive city; London has lost its status as Europe’s most expensive city in which to live to Moscow according to the latest survey by Mercer Human Resources Consulting. Largely due to steeply rising property prices the Russian capital is now the costliest city on the planet and is 12 per cent more expensive than London and 25 per cent more than New York. Tokyo, which was the most expensive city, has also been overtaken by Seoul, to be third and Hong Kong has also taken over from London in fourth spot. London is now fifth followed by Osaka, Geneva, Copenhagen, Zurich and Oslo, which tied with New York for tenth spot. St Petersburg rose from 15th to 12th. Leipzig at 123rd was Europe’s cheapest city. Glasgow at 60th and Birmingham at 69th both dropped down the league table. For further information click here Times 26.06.06
Exurbs are fastest growing cities in the US; the latest data released by the US Census Bureau show that the “exurbs” (extra-urban areas) are the fastest growing cities in the US whilst the major cities are standing still, with a few exceptions such as Phoenix. The exurbs are, by and large, former vibrant rural towns that have become sedate dormitory cities, catering to the needs of commuters who want a secure, affordable lifestyle. Elk Grove, an extensive area of strip malls, manicured streets and traffic jams near to the California capital of Sacramento, is the country’s fastest growing city, moving ahead of North Las Vegas to claim the title. It is one of three Californian cities in the top 10 fastest growing list. Three cities from Florida also make the list, as do two from Arizona. Elk Grove got its first traffic light in 1977, by 1991 it had a population of 50,000, most of them working in agriculture. Today it has a population of 112,000 and has grown by 38.5 per cent since 2000. At the same time the population of New York declined by 21,500 in 2004-5 whilst other major cities such as Chicago and Philadelphia also suffered population decline. For further information click here Guardian 22.06.06
Planning system sends Pfizer to Germany; the Observer claims that Pfizer, the giant US drugs firm, has decided to build its European headquarters in Germany rather than the UK blaming the UK’s bureaucratic planning system. The company had been planning to locate in Surrey. The information is contained in a background document prepared by Kate Barker, the Monetary Policy Committee member, tasked by Gordon Brown to come up with proposals to reform the planning system. Other applications that were “refused or discouraged” projects mentioned in the paper include the “effectively stalled” £1bn IKEA investment programme and “put under threat” a £160m Center Parcs development and a GE healthcare campus. The report also reveals that planning fees in England and Wales now total £200m a year with another £200m spent on consultants and lawyers. The document, a summary of work by a panel of experts, comes at a sensitive time with proposals for nuclear power stations and increased airport capacity being mooted. Barker is due to start publishing her recommendations for the chancellor to consider before his pre-Budget statement in the autumn. She is expected to address the differing interests of local and national interests as well as suggesting that local councils are given incentives to resist ‘Nimby’ pressure. One industry source told the Observer that those critics who say that the planning system is holding back the building of new houses were shooting at the wrong target. “It’s too easy to shift the blame on to planning. What’s holding us up are the Highways Agency and the Environment Agency. It is frustrating some of the steps that we have to go through but we’re trying to create sustainable communities”. Observer 25.06.06
MPs attack planning changes to ease new housing; the House of Commons Select Committee covering Communities and Local Government have attacked the proposed planning changes designed to make it easier to build new homes on the edge of towns. The committee in a report on housing and affordability say that they are “very disappointed” by government plans to drop the so-called sequential test, which means that developers cannot build on Greenfield sites until Brownfield sites have been used up. They express concern that the government’s proposals to revise Planning Policy Guidance 3 to allow developers to build on more profitable out-of-town sites if Brownfield sites cannot be viably developed will encourage urban sprawl and could undermine regeneration. They are particularly worried about the effect it would have on low demand areas in the North and the Midlands. They also call for more money to be spent on social rented housing. For further information click here - Regeneration 23.06.06
New migrants head for Scotland; the Ernst & Young Item Club says that, after many years of decline, the population of Scotland has increased by 32,000 since the start of the decade. Dougie Adams, the author of the report, says that, “this inflow to Scotland has been driven by the tightness of the Scottish labour market, the relative affordability of housing in Scotland and the well-publicised boost from migration of young workers from new EU members”. He says that the new arrivals have brought “distinct benefits to a number of sectors, including agriculture, food processing and hospitality, where it has become difficult to recruit Scottish workers”. The Scottish economy created jobs at a faster rate than the rest of the UK in the first three months of the year and the overall economy is expected to grow by 1.9 per cent this year against 2.3 per cent for the UK. However the good news may be short-lived as the gap will start to grow again in 2007 especially if Gordon Brown tightens the cash taps. Despite the efforts by the Government to even up the gap between the south-east and the rest of the UK the Scottish economy is still heavily dependant on government spending. Adams says that the end of Brown’s largesse is likely to bring a return to the days when “a Scotsman’s best prospect was the road to London”. For further information click here - Observer 25.06.06
Skill
shortages reduced but North still fares worst; the most comprehensive
study of skills yet undertaken in England has found that the proportion of
businesses reporting difficulties in recruiting competent people has fallen
from 22 per cent in 2003 to 16 per cent in 2003. The National Employer Skills
Survey is undertaken by the Learning and Skills Council and reports findings
from 75,000 companies. Yorkshire and Humberside (23 per cent) and the North
East (21 per cent) were the two regions with the biggest skills gaps, whereas
the regions with the least problems were London, the east, the south-west
and the east Midlands who all reported gaps of between 13 and 15 per cent.
For
further information click here Guardian 22.06.06
Government
takes U-turn on statutory sick pay; John Hutton (pictured
right), the Work and Pensions Secretary, has announced very quietly that he
is scrapping plans for employers to have to pay statutory sick pay of a minimum
of £68.20 a week to employees who are away from work from day one. He
has gone back to payments not starting until employees are away for three
consecutive days. He said that the proposal would have been too costly for
business. It was thought that the proposed scheme would have hit small firms
particularly badly and Matthew Knowles of the Federation of Small Business
said; “This is good news for small firms and we are glad that the government
has listened to our views. The increased red tape and cost pressures this
could have placed on small businesses would have been very unhelpful”.
Times 22.06.06
Training hotel planned for London; the first commercial hotel school is being planned for London by Edge, a charity that promotes vocational learning. With echoes of Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen and the Hoxton Apprentice, the proposed hotel will be staffed by 300 trainees who will be students working towards recognised qualifications. The charity’s trustees have agreed to invest several million pounds in the project and are now looking for a suitable premises. They are hoping to have 50 bedrooms, a restaurant, meeting rooms, spa and beauty salon. Garry Hawkes, Edge’s Chairman, left school at 16 to train as a chef and rose to become Chairman and Chief Executive of Gardner Merchant, where he made a fortune in a management buy-out. For further information Financial Times 26.06.06
CBI
attacks skills council and FE colleges; the CBI has attacked
the Learning and Skills Council for funding sub-standard courses that ignore
the needs of employers. It says that the Council should use its commissioning
power to fund more trainers from the private and voluntary sectors, which
would increase competition and push up standards. The LSC currently spends
£5bn a year on the training and education for people over 16 through
the network of 388 state-owned further education colleges. Private providers
can receive LSC funding through the Employer Training Pilots scheme, which
is currently being expanded across the country under the title of Train to
Gain. The recent White Paper on further education said that the replacement
of failing colleges could be decided on the basis of competitions that private
companies could enter. The CBI calls for this to be extended to “coasting”
colleges. Dr John Brennan (pictured right), Chief Executive of the Association
of Colleges rebutted the CBI claims saying that it was “myth”
that college provision was anything but exemplary: “Just 2.9 per cent
of colleges are currently judged as inadequate by Ofsted - higher than schools
and almost 10 times better than work-based training providers”. For
further information click here Financial Times 20.06.06
Carbon
emissions targets to hit power companies; the government is
planning to impose stricter targets on the power companies who will have to
“bear the burden” on new limits on carbon emission. The move,
which will result in higher electricity charges, is part of the plan for British
industry is aimed at saving an extra 8m tones of carbon each year, from 2008-12.
This means that British industry will be allowed to emit only 238 tonnes of
carbon dioxide a year-about 13 per cent down on current levels. This represents
something of a victory for David Miliband as Secretary of State for the Environment,
in his battles with the Department of Trade and Industry, who had wanted a
higher target of 252 tonnes.
Even though some environmental groups attacked the targets as being too low
it still came as a relief after the German and French governments had, in
effect, told their industries that they would be allowed to increase their
output of carbon.
For further information click here - Independent 30.06.06
Planning restrictions removed for micro-generation; the government is poised to remove the need for planning restrictions on homeowners who want to install renewable energy technologies in their home. Micro-generation is seen as having an important role in the country’s energy mix and could provide 30-40 per cent of electricity needs by 2050. At £3,000+ the cost of turning your home into a mini-power station through solar panels or wind turbines has been a preserve of the rich. Many local authorities have insisted that homeowners apply for consent but Yvette Cooper, the Planning Minister, says that it is patently absurd that small-scale micro-generation requires planning permission when a satellite dish does not. Ironically David Cameron, the conservative leader, is waiting to hear whether he has got permission to install a wind turbine in his Notting Hill home against the opposition of some of his neighbours. Britain lags behind many other EU countries such as Austria, who with a population of 8m, have installed the equivalent of 50,000 domestic solar hot water systems compared to less than 6,000 in the UK. Observer 25.06.06
Environmental coalition urges change in aviation policy; an unprecedented coalition of senior greens, scientists and politicians has called for a radical rethink of current plans for air travel expansion, which they say will lead to an enormous increase in emissions of greenhouse gases causing global warming. A letter to the Independent has been signed by leaders of Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, Transport 2000, The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, CPRE, World Wide Fund for Nature, the National Trust, the Woodland Trust and War on Want. Scientists include Sir John Lawton, Chairman of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution and politicians include former Labour and Tory ministers as well as representatives from the Lib Dems and the Greens. They attack the government’s aviation planning which they say is dictated by an outdated “predict and provide” approach. They call for the progress report on aviation policy due to be published this year to become a fundamental rethink on aviation policy. Independent 27.06.06
Reckitt
Benckiser to plant 2 million trees; Reckitt Benckiser, the
world’s biggest cleaning products company, are to plant two million
trees in Canada to offset the greenhouse gas emissions that it produces over
a two-year period. Reckitt Benckiser, who is based in Slough, say that the
Trees for Change project will be one of the biggest of its kind in the world.
It will involve acquiring six square miles of deforested land in British Columbia
and planting native seedlings. Over their lifetime the trees will be able
to absorb one million tones of carbon dioxide. Other companies that have moved
to offset their carbon footprint in recent months include HSBC (700,000 tonnes
a year), Radio Taxis (40,0000 tonnes) and BSkyB (40,000 tonnes).
For
further information click here Times 28.06.06
US cars account for half of car exhaust emissions; a report by the Environmental Defense watchdog group says that the US represents 5 per cent of the world’s population and almost a third of the world’s cars who, in turn, account for half of the global carbon dioxide emissions pumped out of exhaust pipes every year. Further information click here Guardian 29.06.06
London in danger of becoming two cities; Chris Blackhurst, City Editor of the Evening Standard, writes a full-page feature on what he deems the hidden danger in London’s great boom. He says that London’s wealthy are enjoying an earning and spending boom - the like of which has rarely, if ever, been seen before. He instances the art sales, the executive aircraft flying off to football games in Europe, the wine and jewellery sales, the charity auctions and, of course, the property market. But there is a downside. London is in danger of becoming two cities, one rich and getting richer, the other poor and getting poorer. The omens are there for the creation of a third world city, of rich and poor living existing cheek by jowl - with all the social problems that brings. Increasingly, the best jobs and the brightest prospects, and the biggest wages are to be found in London. London’s population is rising not falling. The strain that will place on housing and the environment will be enormous. Already the water is running out, the tube is overcrowded, using Heathrow has ceased to be pleasant, and trains stack up at Waterloo waiting to use too few platforms. Gordon Brown delights in telling us that the UK is the second richest of the G7 nations but he needs to appreciate where that is coming from and build on it. In short he needs to pump funds in, rather than carry on using London and the South East as one giant cash machine for the rest of the country. Evening Standard 23.06.06
Transport plan urges staggered working hours; Transport for London have produced a long-term strategy document, Transport 2025, aimed at enabling the capital to cope with an extra 970,000 jobs and an increase in population from 7.4m to 8.3m. They plan is to offer incentives to change Londoners’ behaviour for them to travel to work at different times, use different forms of transport and walk or cycle more often. Higher rush hour fares are an option and there will be higher congestion charges. Whilst the Mayor, with business support, has urged the go-ahead for Crossrail to help deal with the job growth in the east-west corridor along the Thames the population growth will be much more widespread. The document looks at a number of ways of increasing capacity in addition to Crossrail, including Tube line upgrades, such as extending the Bakerloo Line into south London; improving the rail links including an upgraded Thameslink north/south route, upgrading Waterloo station and extending the Bakerloo line to Watford; more buses and trams including the West London tramline and the cross-river tram between Euston and Waterloo; and a 900km cycle network. The policy document is being circulated to stakeholder groups such as business, local authorities, the CBI, the TUC and passenger groups. For further information click here Financial Times 30.06.06
More ideas for the West End;
the New West End Company has produced proposals for improving the area. A
study by Jones Lang La Salle and Sociovision found that three-quarters of
shoppers in the area felt overwhelmed and exhausted. They propose improved
directions, longer shopping hours and reduced pavement congestion.
For further information
click here Estates Gazette 24.06.06
Mayor launches design advisory unit; a new architecture and design unit, called Design for London, is being created to review the design of major development schemes in London. The unit is being formed by a merger of the staff from the GLA’s Architecture and Urbanism Unit and the LDA’s design team. It will also work closely with Transport for London’s urban design staff. Lord Rogers will chair an advisory group to advise on the direction and work programme of the new unit. For further information click here Regeneration 23.06.06
Londoners fail civility test; according to a poll conducted by the Reader’s Digest London and Paris come a joint 15th in a list of 35 cities examined for local politeness. New York came top with a score of 80 per cent, followed by Zurich (77 per cent) and Toronto (70 per cent). Other cities that beat the London and Paris score of 57 per cent included Berlin, Warsaw, Madrid and Prague. It should be pointed out that the test was not very scientific. The Reader’s Digest sent reporters into the principal city of each of the 35 countries where it publishes to conduct a survey of politeness. Three tests were employed: dropping papers in a busy street to see if anyone would help; checking how often shop assistants said “thank you”; and counting how often someone held a door open. Bombay was judged the rudest city in the world and Bucharest the rudest in Europe. For further information click here Times 20.06.06
Bids invited for Olympic site;
London & Continental Railways (LCR) have put out a tender for partners
to build phases two to six of the Stratford City scheme. The tender, which
was posted in the Official Journal of the European Union, comes less than
a month after Australian shopping-centre giant Westfield took 100 per cent
control of the development rights for the scheme. Westfield has committed
to building phase one – the 1.5m sq ft shopping centre and 1,140 houses-
and may develop other elements. The next phases include up to 4,000 houses,
which will be the athletes’ accommodation for the Games, 1m sq ft of
offices and 398,000 sq ft of leisure facilities. One interested party said
that potential developers would want assurances on section 106 and infrastructure
arrangements. They would also need to be convinced that the area could support
4,000 houses coming on stream simultaneously. At the end of the Games around
3,800 homes used for the athletes will be transferred immediately to residential
use. LCR are said to want a partner who could pre-sell most of the housing
before the Games. Estates Gazette 01.07.06
Games chief guarantees small number of fundamental benefits; amidst growing controversy about that many of the 2012 legacy benefits are not clearly measurable or backed by legal guarantees David Higgins (pictured right), Chief Executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority has briefed the London Assembly on his plans. He indicated that he was likely to reject a detailed system of measurements because they could distort delivery. He instanced procurement, where a policy statement, due to be published this month, would address many of the concerns. “I want targets that don’t distort behaviour, and that are not just to tick boxes. We’ve had suggestions of hundreds of things that we could measure- but I want this to achieve a few milestone things”. He wanted the systems that were to be set up to act as a catalyst for wider improvement in the industry, rather than simply setting better standards for the Olympics. The ODA, which is charged with building the Olympic Park, currently has no specific targets over the use of local labour, and has refused to guarantee that it will pay workers a living wage. Further information - Regeneration 23.06.06
Old
Pru HQ to become conference centre; the former headquarters
of Prudential Assurance at Holborn Bars (pictured right) is to become a conference,
meeting and training centre. The gothic, Grade 11-listed building was designed
by Alfred Waterhouse and built in 1906. It still boasts many period features
including a dramatic library and a board room capable of hosting up to 250
people. Verve Venues, a newly rebranded company, acquired last December by
HBOS and executives from MWB, has taken a 21-year lease on the building and
after refurbishment it will, reopen in October. For
further information click here Times 22.06.06
Battersea ‘hangs in the balance’; the Estates Gazette says that the £1.5bn redevelopment of Battersea Power Station (pictured right) is hanging in the balance as the bankers to the scheme become increasingly frustrated about the failure to find a funding partner. The plan, developed over 10 years, is to build a 3 million sq ft scheme with 1.5m sq ft of shops, leisure, and a convention centre, plus hotels, housing and 750,000 sq ft of offices on the 35-acre site. One of the problems is thought to be that Victor Hwang, the developer, refuses to budge from his vision of Battersea as a high-value, upmarket retail scheme despite potential investors wanting a different balance. Another problem is the long-standing opposition from local residents who want the building preserved in its entirety. Wandsworth Council has supported Hwang in his plan to demolish the four chimneys and then rebuild them, which is seen as key to the whole scheme. The Department of Culture, Media and Sport is currently considering an application to upgrade the listing of the Power Station from Grade 11 to Grade 11* which, if granted, would make the towers impossible to demolish. The council is currently awaiting the last of the detailed planning applications, which is due before 21st July 2006. Estates Gazette 24.06.06
Kelly calls for Smithfield inquiry; the government has ruled that the £150m redevelopment of part of Smithfield Market should face a public inquiry. Plans for a massive flat-fronted steel and glass building to replace the derelict General Market building facing onto Farringdon Street will now be put on hold with the inquiry likely to prevent work starting until late next year. The project, which would see the unlisted market hall turned into offices and an urban market hall, had looked set for the green light after being approved by the Corporation of London in May. It is understood that Ruth Kelly, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, decided to force the redevelopment through a public inquiry after receiving a series of high-profile objections. Evening Standard 23.06.06
Middlesex Hospital to become luxury flats; around the Middlesex Hospital, Britain’s first “lying-in” hospital, has been sold for an approximate sum of £200m- twice the figure expected. The winning bidder, from approximately 20 bids, is Project Abbey, an offshore investment consortium led by CPC Group. They have appointed Candy & Candy as the development managers for a £1bn redevelopment to transform the building into luxury flats, shops and offices. Ken Shuttleworth of Make, who designed the Swiss Re Gherkin building when he was a partner of Sir Norman Foster, will prepare the masterplan. Half the space will be residential and the rest commercial. One of the main issues is that Westminster Council want to reduce the height of some of the buildings from 10 storeys to four at street level and six overall. The work is expected to be completed in time for the 2012 Games and will be linked to the Mayor’s plans to extend the West End. Candy & Candy are also handling the redevelopment of Bowater House in Knightsbridge and have established a Europe-wide portfolio of luxury residential developments. For further information click here - Times 29.06.06
Now Qatar enters bidding for Chelsea barracks; the State of Qatar is now amongst the 70 parties battling to buy the 12.8-acre Chelsea Barracks two months before it goes on the market. Although it was expected to be marketed at about £250m price expectations are now moving towards £400m for the site which lies between Sloane Square and the River Thames. In common with the US government, the Qatari government is thought to be looking at the site as a home for their London embassy. Chelsea Barracks has been earmarked for a landmark residential scheme in a draft Westminster council planning brief that goes to Cabinet for approval on 7th September. The sale is scheduled for completion in April 2008, after the Ministry of Defence moves 300 ceremonial troops to Woolwich Station. For further information click here Estates Gazette 01.07.06
Grapevine is produced twice monthly (except August and December when
there is one issue) by Brian Wright on behalf of GLE
Next issue on 27th July, 2006