Opinion – Page 324
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Comment
Flipping ironic
Oh the irony, in the wake of the expenses scandal, of an MP commenting about consultants “creaming off cash” (14 May, ).
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Comment
Taken for Granted
I am concerned on behalf of the 400,000 homeless people in the UK, that the downgrading of this vital ministry from the Cabinet will result in little new action on behalf of the most vulnerable within our society (“Grant Shapps is housing minister”, 13 May, building.co.uk).
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And so the cuts begin
Well done Cameron – brilliant (“Billions of pounds of schools and health projects frozen,” 14 May, page 9).
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Building schools in the future
Building schools in the future Speculation about what is going to happen after the election is unhelpful (14 May, page 3).
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Comment
Nothing new
It’s interesting that the RICS has learned nothing from the past. I criticised the organisation years ago for not consulting its members or doing what was in the interests of its members (I resigned eventually after many attempts to influence failed) and it is still not doing what it should. ...
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CommentWhat’s going on?
The coalition has stated that it will review spending commitments made since January using its own value for money criteria, and it’s obvious that the £55bn earmarked for schools renewal is not going to survive this process unscathed
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Comment
Elections? Who needs them
Back issues special We had two other hung parliaments in the past hundred years. If the election of 1974 was bizarre by today’s standards, 1929 was truly surreal,
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CommentA day at Moscow's OfficeNext conference
Russia’s capital has experienced a recent boom, so it’s about time it had a commercial office exhibition to reflect the fact - BDG Workfutures’s Phil Hutchinson was there
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Comment
Private housing completions in England have dropped by more than half since the credit crunch
We all know it’s been bad in house building, but sometimes you have to look at the figures again to remind yourself just how bad things have been. The release of the latest housing figures provides that reality check, as the graph below so clearly illustrates. It's been carnage ...
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Comment
The problem with surprises on inflation
Could it be that we are about to witness the beginnings of widening concerns over rising inflation?The Consumer Prices Index “surprise” jump to 3.7% yesterday will certainly increase rumblings in the markets and elsewhere.Although for the time being I suspect attention will be more focused on June 22 and ...
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CommentWill London's new bus win our hearts?
The newly redesigned Routemaster has been launched. Is it any good and perhaps even more importantly, is it worth it?
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CommentIs Shapps going to be good news for housebuilders?
The appointment of new housing minister Grant Shapps has been warmly welcomed by the housing industry. Twas ever thus. Trade bodies always welcome the announcement of new ministers, because even if they disagree with everything they’ve ever said, written, thought, or even considered thinking, there’s no point making them your ...
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Comment
Tactical adjudications
The court reminded the parties in the case of Pilon vs Bryer not to play too many games
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Tactical adjudications
Everyone knows that adjudications are often as much about tactical manoeuvring as they are about the substance of the dispute. However, once in a while the courts like to remind parties not to push their luck too far. That is exactly what happened in Pilon Limited vs Breyer Group Plc.Pilon, ...
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Comment
The new austerity begins now
One of the side effects of spending five days in limbo after the general election is that some of the construction industry might have got the funny idea that nothing much had changed
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The big question for Mr Shapps
I would like to be among those welcoming Grant Shapps to his new role as housing minister and wishing him well. I must admit I have not been particularly kind to his ideas to date. It’s my job to be critical I guess.But for the record I do have a ...
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Comment
Gus Alexander: Prince Charles the wrecker
As if dealing with planners for months on end wasn’t painful enough, we now have to calculate a last-minute intervention from a prince addicted to retro architecture
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CommentQuentin Shears: The kingmaker
’The fresh croissants are, I feel, a big, open and comprehensive offer’
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Hansom: Coming to my bash?
Quarrels over ways of measuring embodied energy (no, really), communication breakdowns, last-ditch efforts to prevent desertion … oh, why can’t we just be Friends?