Opinion 鈥� Page 401
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Positive action
All of us here at Inbuilt are enthusiastic about the UK Green 黑洞社区 Council鈥檚 report on Low Carbon Existing Homes which was published this week.
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CommentRaising the bar
It is no surprise to see that a scheme masterminded by Countryside Properties under the chairmanship of Alan Cherry has won the Stirling prize.
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Painting a bleak picture
The HSE recently found that a high number of professional home refurbishment projects in London were unsafe. But this hides a big problem: exposure to lead dust and fumes arising from something as simple as redecorating your own living room (if you live in a pre-1960s home).
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Comment
All they survey
I worked for many years in the engineering insurance industry as an engineer surveyor carrying out statutory inspections of lifting equipment. During the course of my job I visited many building sites each week to inspect cranes and other mobile lifting equipment. Although I am now retired, I know that ...
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CommentHow to score a bull鈥檚-eye
The government is way off target on its schools building programme. So what, precisely, would the Tories do if they were in charge? Michael Gove takes aim
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Comment黑洞社区 buys a pint 鈥� for Verry Construction
The Stirling prize is clearly not what it used to be for Verry Construction. Two days after it was announced that Feilden Clegg Bradley had won UK architecture鈥檚 top prize for a housing scheme in Cambridge, the team at Verry is reminiscing fondly about last year鈥檚 award.
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CommentWhat is to be done?
Do you remember the joke doing the rounds in the last recession? What do you say to an architect? 鈥淏ig Mac and fries, please.鈥�
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CommentOut with the old
As the autumn trees are changing, we turn over a new leaf, with a different housing minister, some original vocabulary, a fresh-look logo and the option to go for tapas
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Comment
US are repossessing more homes per head than the UK is building
Now here is a thought. Over the past months, the rate of foreclosures (repossession) per head of population in the US has been running ahead of the rate of new homes built per head of population in the UK.I haven't got the precise figures on UK completions, because they haven't ...
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Comment
OFT must act to stop suicidal bidding in the face of recession
If Mervyn King says we are about to head into recession, frankly it's pretty much a done deal.No matter how much the Government says it wants to protect construction, in reality there is only so much it can do. The industry is heading for recession, if it is not already ...
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Comment
New depths reached in housing market sales
The latest statistics from HM Revenue & Customs show that new record lows have been plumbed by sales in the UK housing market.On a seasonally adjusted basis, sales in September dropped to just 38% of the peak level reached in December 2006.Taking a broad brush view, it would seem that ...
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Is this the worst time to be "more relaxed"?
I am sure I will not be the only one who draws this parallel. But I suspect it is a classic illustration of why credibility matters in both politics and economics.George Bush on the US economy, October 2008: "I have heard that people's attitudes are beginning to change from a ...
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Rightmove - wrong meaning
I'm not one for publicly criticising other journalists and their take on things. I feel vulnerable enough myself.But sometimes it is worth clearing up a bit of confusion.I read the Rightmove figures and thought no surprise there then, not worth a comment this time around.I then read various headlines and ...
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Tender price squeeze is likely to threaten construction firms
The latest projections from the cost service BCIS point to further reductions in tender price over the next two years despite expected rises in input prices.The latest figures show a fall of 1.2% in the first quarter of this year, followed by no growth in the second quarter, while costs ...
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Comment
Spend big, yes, but spend wisely on construction Mr Darling
Just over a week ago I had lunch with three economists, all with more than a passing interest in construction. Oddly, perhaps, for a group of economist there seemed to be a consensus, well at least on one topic.If construction is heading for recession then the Government is wise to ...
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Darling's bid might steer construction away from a nasty recession
Less than a fortnight ago I wondered whether we might see a return to Keynesian-style cash injections to buoy the real economy and more specifically construction. I recall other similar comments in the media.Now it seems from stories in the FT and the Telegraph that this thought may become reality. ...
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CommentLet鈥檚 work together
Sir Michael Latham The business and enterprise select committee鈥檚 proposal for a chief construction offer has been taken up. Now we need to push for integrated teams
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CommentThe state is back
It is three years since the National Federation of Builders began highlighting the woeful service its members receive from utilities companies.
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CommentJurisdiction of the court
The CaseThe defendant invited tenders for building works to convert a hotel back into the family house that it originally was. The claimant鈥檚 tender was successful. At the time the claimant commenced work, there was no contract in place. Thereafter, as the works progressed, there were negotiations between the parties ...