Rachel Reeves to slash environmental protections to boost builders August 18, 2025 Rachel Reeves is looking to take the axe to environmental protections blocking infrastructure projects in a bid to boost Labour’s building pledges. The Chancellor is considering reforms to prevent nature concerns from inhibiting new developments as she desperately looks to supercharge her growth agenda. Labour’s Planning and Infrastructure bill is in the committee stage at [...]
House builder blames ‘broken planning system’ and interest rates for loss August 7, 2025 In independent house builder has blamed the “broken planning system” and high interest rates putting off first time buyers for it falling into the red. Cheshire-based Eccleston Homes has reported a pre-tax loss of £1.2m for the 12 months to 31 October, 2024, down from the £2m profit it achieved in the prior year. New [...]
A year of hard Labour: UK plc’s verdict on Starmer and Reeves July 3, 2025 Just a year ago, Keir Starmer’s Labour party won an historic general election victory having promised to be “the most pro-business government this country has seen’. Ali Lyon sees whether industry and business leaders feel the party has met that vow 12 months on. As some of the great and good of Britain’s storied business [...]
‘Bold’ new plans for Barbican area submitted June 25, 2025 Plans have been submitted to redevelop 1 Silk Street, featuring a public plaza at the Barbican Centre’s main entrance and a retail arcade. The proposal seeks to turn the existing building, which is currently occupied by Linklaters but set to become unlettable due to tightening energy efficiency standards, into a “long-term, sustainable” site. “We’re pleased [...]
We’ve been building since 1886 – the planning system is the worst it’s ever been June 18, 2025 Delays in the UK planning system – down to brick colour and tile choices – are stalling housing delivery. We need 3,000 new planners and faster approvals to meet national housing goals and boost economic growth, says Tim Roberts When Britain is in the midst of a housing crisis you don’t, as a house builder, [...]
Will Reeves’ spending review make UK housing more affordable? June 11, 2025 Rachel Reeves has made housebuilding a central feature of the government’s spending policy. The planning system has been reformed, money has been funnelled into skills and developing brownfield housing, and new towns have been announced. But this afternoon’s spending review has firmly set out the government’s commitments for the sector, and affordable regional housing is [...]
Bellway: Completions surge at FTSE 250 housebuilder June 10, 2025 Bellway has said it expects to see a surge in home completions amid an increase in consumer confidence and reservation rates. The FTSE 250 housebuilder and property developer said it was well-positioned to deliver cumulative volume growth of 20 per cent over the two years to end July 2026. In a trading update, the Newcastle-based [...]
Is Labour’s Planning Bill putting private equity at risk? May 16, 2025 It’s not just conservationists who are up in arms about the watering down of environmental protections in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, the private markets are concerned too, says Robert Oates There’s an irony at the heart of the UK government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill: in its rush to accelerate the development of 1.5m new [...]
City of London elects new planning and transport committee chair May 6, 2025 The City of London Corporation has appointed Tom Sleigh as chair of the Planning and Transportation Committee, succeeding Shravan Joshi MBE. Joshi has taken on the role of the Committee’s deputy chair uncontested, replacing Graham Packham. Sleigh, who has represented the ward of Bishopsgate since 2013, said it was a “privilege to be elected… at [...]
Inside the ‘nationally significant’ plan to put Manchester ‘on the map’ April 24, 2025 The first phase of a “nationally significant” plan which would see 20,000 jobs created and put Greater Manchester “on the map” has been officially submitted. The Northern Gateway development would be the largest proposed employment site in the region – with its first phase including up to 6.5 million sq ft of employment space, supporting [...]