Policy & Politics Update

Property, Transport, Environment and Infrastructure

3rd July 2012

Property, planning and regeneration

Houses planned for South West plummet Planned housing numbers in the South West have plummeted by 20 per cent following the scr apping of Regional Planning Strategies. Research published on 28 June by the Home Builders Federation shows that, with a reduction of 115,000 homes, just 54 per cent of the homes needed in the region are set to be built. The report also shows that house-building in the South East has fallen by about 35 per cent over the last six years, while the number of planning permissions granted has fallen by a similar proportion. (Source: Home Builders Federation) Demand for office space growing Increased demand for space has signalled an improvement in the office sector, with the value of office project starts rising over the past twelve months. Analysis from Glenigan, the construction market forecasting and analysis provider, has shown that the take-up of office space has remained strong in various locations across the UK, despite gloom in the wider economy. New projects remain concentrated in London and the South East, with 45 per cent of new office builds starting in 2011 located in the region. (Source: Glenigan) Councils spending on planning to fall by over 90 per cent by 2020 The Local Government Association (LGA) has warned that local authority spending on planning and development services could be cut by more than 90 per cent by 2020. This stark outlook is reported in Funding outlook for councils from 2010/11 to 2019/20, published by the LGA on 26 June. The LGA expects the cuts to occur as a result of the proposed cuts in central government funding to local authorities. (Source: Local Government Association) Home ownership cheaper than renting The cost of home ownership is cheaper than renting in 42 of the top 50 towns and cities in the UK, according to research by the property website zoopla.co.uk published on 26 June. This is an increase of four percent on this time last year. The increase has been put down to the shortage of accessible mortgages creating difficulties for first time buyers, resulting in a rise in demand for rental properties pushing up average rents across Britain. (Source: 24dash) UK house prices down over the last quarter Average house prices in the UK fell by one per cent in the second quarter of 2012, following a 0.6 per cent drop in June. Nationwides latest House Price Index, published on 28 June, revealed that while London saw the strongest quarter-on-quarter growth of one per cent, house prices in Scotland performed worst, falling by two per cent. (Source: Nationwide) Maude announces procurement trials... The Rt Hon Francis Maude MP, Minister for the Cabinet Office, is set to announce trials of new procurement in a One Year On report on the Governments Construction Strategy, which was launched in June last year. The Strategy features three new forms of procurement among its 37 trial projects, but Building magazine reports that there have been calls to introduce new principles, such as early contractor involvement, partnering and an open-book approach. (Source: Building)

...but little change to date in public sector procurement Three quarters of public sector clients have made no changes to their procurement practices following the recommendations set out in the Governments Construction Strategy. A study by Building magazine, published on 29 June, revealed that only 31 per cent of public sector clients said they had a strategy to reduce construction costs by the 15 20 per cent recommended in the Construction Strategy. Only six per cent said that the Strategy had changed the way they procured construction. The survey was based on responses from 350 construction clients, including 110 from the public sector. (Source: Building) CITB-ConstructionSkills overhauls funding scheme On 27 June, CITB-ConstructionSkills announced that it was overhauling its 2012-13 Grants Scheme. It stated that improvements to the scheme will result in more grants being paid out to construction companies in a range of areas, providing thousands of pounds for employee training. Included in the measures is an increase in grants for companies that take on apprentices. (Source: CITB-ConstructionSkills) Architects call for Government action on design A number of leading architects have criticised the Coalition Governments record on design, questioning how changes in policy will translate into action, according to Building Design magazine. Speaking at a Design Summit, held at Londons City Hall on 26 June, the former president of the Royal Institute of British Architects, Sunand Prasad, highlighted that the architectural sector accounts for six per cent of UK GDP and, if design was taken seriously, could play a bigger role in re-balancing the economy. (Source: Building Design)

Transport
Third allocation from Sustainable Transport Fund Norman Baker MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport at the Department for Transport (DfT), has announced funding for 12 major projects and 15 smaller schemes across 24 local authorities in England. The money has been made available through the Governments Sustainable Transport Fund. Speaking on 27 June, Mr Baker announced the allocation of 266 million for projects including a cycle hire scheme in Reading, new improvements to transport infrastructure in Merseyside and an expansion of the Nottingham smartcard scheme. (Source: DfT) Look to regional airports, says Birmingham Birmingham International Airport has urged the Government to focus on improving regional airports rather than develop a new hub airport in the South East. Following the launch of BAAs campaign for a third runway at Heathrow, Birmingham International Airport chief executive, Paul Kehoe, told the Today Programme that Birmingham has the capacity to ease the strain on Heathrow. He also highlighted the ability of new, smaller aeroplanes to fly longer distances, resulting in less need for people to use larger hub airports. (Source: BBC) Thames Estuary airport a no-go A new report has concluded that the proposed 40 billion Thames Estuary airport is not the answer to the UKs aviation crisis. The report was produced by consultants Parsons Binkerhoff Ltd, on behalf of the South East Learning and Enterprise Partnership. The report concludes that a new airport would not be cost efficient, dealing a blow to the plans by London Mayor Boris Johnson and architect Lord Foster. The report also found that developing a new airport in north Kent would not be a cost-efficient solution and recommended expanding existing airports, including, potentially, providing a third runway at Heathrow. (Source: KentOnline) Crossrail for West Kensington The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) has submitted plans for a new Crossrail station to be built at Kensal Gasworks, as part of the regeneration of the former industrial site. RBKC suggests that the regeneration will create up to 2,000 new jobs and boost the local economy by 690 million. The 33 million cost of the station would be underwritten by RBKC so as to comply with the requirement that proposed new stations must not add any further cost to the overall Crossrail project. (Source: Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea)

Heathwick plans gain traction A number of key Whitehall figures believe that the creation of a Heathrow-Gatwick aviation hub, connected by a high speed link and including an extra runway at Gatwick, could be the best solution to the UK aviation crisis. However, BAA, the owner of Heathrow, has said that the hub would face insurmountable challenges in terms of baggage and passenger transfers, and there is expected to be opposition to the estimated 5 billion cost of a high speed link between the airports. The idea is one of a number of proposals which are to be examined through the Governments consultation on airports, including options for expanding Heathrow or Stansted or for building a new airport in the Thames Estuary. (Source: London Evening Standard) Network Rail launches transparency programme Network Rail has launched a new information portal on its website as part of its commitment to greater transparency. The new portal, launched on 28 June, will provide members of the public with information including live train running information, the costs of large projects, executive pay and expenses and board meeting minutes and agendas. The initiative also welcomes feedback from members of the public and suggestions on what further information should be released in future. (Source: Network Rail) Happier commuting in Wales The Campaign for Better Transport (CBT) has released figures this week which show that commuters into Cardiff are the happiest in the UK. The Cardiff-route is the best in the UK for lack of overcrowding and affordability, and is the third best nationally for punctuality. The figures released by the CBT were announced to coincide with the final week of the Government consultation on rail fares, which closed at the end of last week.

Energy and environment

Energy bill will not deliver A number of energy companies, consumer organisations and academics have concluded that the Governments draft Energy Bill will fail to encourage large-scale investment in energy efficiency and clean energy. The statement, issued on 27 June, recommends several changes to the bill including more effort to reduce energy consumption and a review of energy tariffs. It also warns that the failure to set an emissions limit for electricity generation means the UK is unlikely to meet its carbon reduction targets. (Source: Business Green) Long-term challenges in securing low carbon energy The National Audit Office (NAO) has laid out the challenges the UK faces in securing affordable, low carbon electricity over the next decade. In a memorandum to the Public Accounts Committee, the NAO stated that 110 billion of investment in electricity infrastructure is needed by 2020 to produce around 30 gigawatts of new generating capacity. This increase will counter higher electricity demand and provide back-up capacity in light of the scheduled closures of one fifth of existing power generators. Source: National Audit Office) Renewables on the rise On 28 June, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) released its quarterly statistics, showing that renewable energy generation hit a record high this quarter, providing over 11 per cent of the UKs electricity generation. Output from all renewable sources increased by 39 per cent compared with the same quarter in 2010. Onshore wind has seen the highest absolute increase, with a 51 per cent rise since this the first quarter of 2011. (Source: DECC) 800 per cent growth potential for anaerobic digestion The anaerobic digestion industry now creates four times more electricity than solar panels, according to Lord Redesdale, chairman of the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association. Lord Redesdale believes that the industry has the potential to grow 800 per cent by 2020 to become an important part of the UK energy system. (Source: MRW)

Welsh Assembly seeks planning powers for renewables projects The Welsh Assembly is seeking to obtain new energy consenting and financial incentive powers to put the incentives for marine wave and tidal projects in Wales on a par with the system in Scotland. A report by the Assemblys Environment and Sustainability Committee has called for the establishment of a renewable energy delivery board to co-ordinate Welsh energy developments. The Committee also stated that new measures should be introduced to help develop the energy sector as an economic driver in Wales and that communities should benefit from projects developed locally. (Source: Welsh Government)

Other news
Community Right to Challenge comes into effect The Governments Community Right to Challenge provisions came into effect on 27 June 2012. The provisions allow communities to bid to take over local services they think they can run better than local authorities. The Community Right to Challenge aims to hand power back to communities and the Government hopes that voluntary and community groups, parish councils and local authority staff in particular will express an interest in taking over the running of certain services. (Source: DCLG) Investment could unlock the potential of mid-sized cities The Centre for Cities has called for the establishment of a new investment fund focused on making mid-sized cities, such as Sunderland and Preston, more attractive to business. The recommendation was made in the report Hidden Potential, published on 26 June. It estimates that the fund should be set at a minimum of 500 million, drawing on existing Government and European funding streams as well as funding and expertise from the private sector. It would be used to help reconfigure city centres to attract business and create jobs. (Source: Centre for Cities)

About Camargue
Camargue is one of the largest independent PR agencies in the UK. Our core markets are: Business and Professional services, Energy and the Environment, Property and Infrastructure, Construction and Materials. The focus of our work is to inform and influence the media, business and political stakeholders, employees, local communities, and, from time to time, the public at large. Our aim is to help shape opinions, responses and behaviours in order to support our clients' commercial objectives. We provide the full spectrum of communications services. All of our campaigns are based on sound research and have targets against which actual results can be measured. We work with clients on a retained and project basis. Our work includes: Stakeholder liaison Media relations Political planning programmes Research Communications strategy Public affairs Evaluation Event management Design and marketing collateral Web and multimedia

For more information: www.camarguepr.com London Jenny Marshall Director 020 7636 7366 [email protected] Cheltenham Tim Read Director 01242 577 277 [email protected] Birmingham Stuart Fox Director 0121 616 5920 [email protected]

Camargue Group Limited registered office: Eagle Tower, Montpellier Drive, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL50 1TA. Registered Number 03954008