£10bn switch to capital spending from revenue spending announced over the next two parliaments

Chancellor George Osborne has pledged to “get Britain building again” in his autumn statement.

He said an extra £5bn would be spent on capital projects as a result of reducing revenue spending by the same amount. This will be allocated to construction over the next three years with an additional £5bn spent in the next parliament, Osborne told the House of Commons.

The chancellor also announced a return for Margaret Thatcher’s ‘Right to buy’ housing policy, which he described as one of the “most successful social policies of all time” and is expected to generate reveues for councils by offering deals to tenants including discounts of up to 50%.

But in the supporting documents it emerged Osborne will cut stamp duty relief on all house purchases worth up to £175,000 from March 24 next year.

The announcements came as the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) slashed its growth forecasts for the UK economy.

The OBR predicted growth at 0.9% for this year and 0.7% for 2012 – sharply downgraded from 1.7% and 2.5% in its last forecasts at the time of the March Budget but not the return to recession predicted by other think tanks.

Osborne backed or brought forward 500 construction projects – including the extension of the Northern line in London to Battersea and a new airport hub for the South-east.

Osborne also announced:

• More details on the government’s credit easing scheme to help SMEs obtain finance, including £20bn to be made available over the next two years.
• Another £1bn of funding for the regional growth fund.
• An additional £1.2bn of spending on education – £600m on basic need and £600m on free schools.
• He also confirmed a £400m kitty for housebuilders that are having difficulty getting bank lending.

One of the main sources of the £5bn infrastructure boost will be a clampdown on public sector pay, Osborne said.

Source: Building E news

Greg Barker announces plans to half feed-in tariff for solar PV

The government has unveiled plans to slash the feed-in tariff for small solar power generators by over half.

Greg Barker announced plans to reduce the feed-in tariff for generators under 4kW capacity, which includes most domestic installations, will be 21p per kWh from April next year, down from its current 43.3p per kWh rate. Installations made after 12 December would be able to claim the current tariff only until April.

Barker said: “My priority is to put the solar industry on a firm footing so that it can remain a successful and prosperous part of the green economy, and so that it doesn’t fall victim to boom and bust.

He blamed the need to cut the tariff on unexpectedly high levels of demand, which would see the bill for the feed-in tariff rise to £980m a year by 2014-15 if it was left at its current rate. He said his new rate would cut the bill to £250-280m in 2014-15.

Larger generators will also have their feed-in tariff cut.

Speculation about how high the feed-in tariff should be set has been rife for weeks.

Last week, energy minister Greg Barker confirmed the tariff would be cut. He said: “The subsidised returns we have seen on solar panel investments – funded from consumer energy bills – are unsustainable at a time when National Savings have pulled their index linked bonds, interest on savings accounts has plummeted and the stock market has dropped.”

The Financial Times reported that ministers were going to slash the rate to 21p Per kWh.

Solar panel fitters have warned that any cut below 28p would be devastating to the industry. They said it would see consumer demand would collapse because the pay back from having the panels installed would be too marginal to incentivise people to install them.

Source: Building E news

The RICS has today launched a new two-pronged estate agency initiative which could challenge the NAEA’s licensed scheme.

It is telling consumers to use RICS members – whilst simultaneously upping its recruitment drive to high street estate agents, who can become RICS associates.

The RICS’s new campaign is based on the publication of the latest edition of its UK Residential Property Standards, ‘the Blue Book’, and is aimed at consumers, publicly endorsing RICS estate agents.

The RICS, which has recently taken on an external PR firm to promote its residential faculty, said it hopes to change the way people view estate agents.

The RICS said that with anyone able to set up a sales or lettings agency, ‘many people have doubted whether agents have the expertise needed’.
 
The Blue Book, says the RICS, provides residential sales and letting professionals with best practice advice.
 
David Dalby, RICS director of residential, said: “We hope to change people’s perception of estate agencies by promoting the standards expected of residential agents under the long-established RICS brand.
 
“The Blue Book will also help estate agents to improve their business by providing advice on issues such as conflicts of interest and how to build better relationships with buyers and sellers as well as information on how to expand their range of services.
 
“The RICS is the only chartered organisation monitoring residential agents, and those using an RICS agency will know that the level of service provided is of the highest standard.”
 
The RICS has also developed a new online resource, isurv Estate Agency, which offers agents advice on how to deal with all aspects of residential estate agency and provides access to the Blue Book.
 
High street estate agents have been able to become associate members of RICS through the Residential Estate Agency route since 2009.

A merger between the NAEA and RICS was on the cards a few years ago but failed to go through. The deal would have given NAEA members technical membership of the RICS.

A particular issue for the RICS has been recruitment, with the ever-increasing age of its members, and low membership numbers in its residential faculty. However, the RICS can lay claim to being a professional organisation rather than a trade body.

Source: Estate Agent Today

NHBC warns of problems arising from adverse UK weather

A report by the National House Building Council (NHBC) has highlighted widespread issues arising from the shoddy installation of solar panels.

The organisation’s research arm, the NHBC Foundation, said it had been alerted to a number of cases of roof leaks arising from poor workmanship.

The foundation said the UK’s combination of windy and wet weather threw up special considerations for the installation of solar panels.

Graham Perrior at the NHBC Foundation said: “Use of renewable energy technology is much advanced across parts of Europe, so there exists a tendency to follow instructions and examples set elsewhere.

“Unfortunately, the UK’s unique weather system requires a specific approach to installation.

“For example, the potential for prolonged periods of rain in conjunction with high winds is something that must be thoroughly considered to ensure satisfactory installation.

“Recent government initiatives, such as feed-in tariffs and the Renewable Heat Incentive are encouraging consumers to embrace renewable technology.

“However, while there is widespread enthusiasm for these initiatives, there is a gap in knowledge about the best way to install renewable technology on a domestic scale.”

Source: Building magazine on line