黑洞社区

The hot air鈥檚 sealed in 鈥�

Last week energy secretary Ed Davey braved the lions鈥� den of online social network Mumsnet to take questions. There was some very informed quizzing on the Green Deal and it was heartening to see the politician putting his money where his mouth is. In response to questions about his own efforts to save energy he said: 鈥淣ot enough - yet! I did replace my front door last year, which was leaking energy, and then we bought a new boiler two years ago. However - and this is the key point - I鈥檓 going to get Green Dealed!!鈥� I assume this last turn of phrase doesn鈥檛 mean Mr Davey will be covering himself in solid wall insulation.

Ripping yarn

Still unsure whether to take up the Green Deal, even after Mr Davey鈥檚 impressive show of commitment to the cause? You could do worse than have a look at the 鈥渕ythbuster鈥� on the subject published by consumer website MoneySavingExpert.com. This comprehensive guide is fairly positive about the merits of the policy, particularly for homeowners who need significant upgrading done and can鈥檛 afford the upfront costs. However, its sheer size is also rather telling about the complexity of the Green Deal. The mythbuster takes the form of a list of no less than 20 points covering almost 6,500 words. Anyone who can plough through all that surely deserves all the incentives the government can throw at them 鈥�

Second time lucky

Venerable quantity surveyor Northcroft - established in 1840 - lost its independence when it was bought out of administration by rival Capita Symonds with little fanfare last March. As the first anniversary of this deal approaches, I鈥檝e learned Capita Symonds was rather lucky not to pay substantially more for the acquisition than it did. A source close to Northcroft tells me that, less than a year before the takeover, it received a multimillion-pound approach from Capita Symonds but the two companies failed to reach an agreement. The value of the eventual purchase has not been disclosed, but it is understood to have been substantially cheaper than the earlier mooted price.

Keep it real

Here鈥檚 a solution if you鈥檙e faced with a client lacking imagination. I hear fit-out firms have begun presenting their interior designs in 鈥渁ugmented reality鈥� with the help of tablet computers. The technology allows the client to move around an existing space, point at specific areas and see on the screen what they will look like once they have been revamped. All very 2013. Let鈥檚 hope the technology doesn鈥檛 advance too much further - a properly virtual world would put us all out of a job.

The year of the newt

Is it me or are there a lot of newts about? I鈥檝e noticed a lot of stories about construction jobs being held up by the protected amphibian species, including a 拢14m police headquarters in Durham, which can now finally be built by Kier thanks to various measures including the erection of a special fence agreed with Natural England to safeguard the beasts. I鈥檓 no zoologist but could the very wet weather we have been experiencing be responsible for higher-than-normal newt numbers? Answers on a postcard please!