The return of the mega project helps value of construction schemes hit £74bn in 2015 January 21, 2016 Construction projects soared by £10bn in value last year to £74bn thanks to a resurgence in large-scale schemes. The number of projects commissioned in 2015 decreased by 4.7 per cent year-on-year to under 12,000. However, the total value increased overall as schemes grew bigger, with the average project value rising by 18 per cent to [...]
Budget 2016: Industry groups warn chancellor George Osborne against hiking insurance premium tax as EY Item Club urges against planned £4bn in spending cuts March 14, 2016 Leading industry groups are pleading with the Treasury to give British businesses a break at this week’s Budget, as chancellor George Osborne eyes up a major tax hike on insurance premiums and higher tax revenues from Britain’s biggest banks. The AA warned over the weekend that the chancellor is considering raising the basic rate of [...]
London weather: Thames Barrier closes for first time this year as spring tides loom just after Storm Imogen brought heavy rainfall and wind to the south of England February 10, 2016 It's official: it's been raining in London. The Environment Agency announced this morning that it has shut the Thames Barrier, a 520m moveable barrier in east London, for the first time this winter. "We are closing the barrier to protect London from the threat of flooding due to the high level of rain last week combined [...]
Don’t dump upfront pensions tax relief: Why a Pensions Isa won’t drive people to save February 12, 2016 A pensions revolution may truly be upon us. Hats off then to City A.M. whose reporting has led the way in publicising the Treasury’s activities in advance of potential changes to how Britain incentivises pension saving. The lurid comparison with Gordon Brown and his 1997 abolition of dividend tax credits made by former pensions minister Steve [...]
Direct Line Insurance Group share price rises as it reveals its estimated costs of the storms of up to £140m, while PwC predicts a mixed bag for premiums this year January 12, 2016 Direct Line Insurance Group today revealed that it estimated that this winter’s floods would cost it between £110m and £140m in claims across both its home and commercial divisions. The company stressed that these figures were estimates only and that an actual amount for insured losses could not be given with certainty for some while. After [...]
Storm Desmond flooding: As claims creep in, insurers assure consumers they are already ready for winter’s bad weather December 6, 2015 The Association of British Insurers (ABI) reassured consumers on Saturday that the industry had been braced for bad weather. “Insurers expect bad weather during the winter and will be geared up to help customers who have suffered flood and storm damage recover as quickly as possible,” remarked Malcolm Tarling, a spokesperson for the ABI, in a [...]
Supermarkets abandon more schemes as pressure mounts on Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Asda and Tesco March 8, 2016 The number of developments ditched by Britain's supermarket titans has jumped since the first half of the year, with construction and planning applications also in decline, new research shows. Property advisory firm CBRE's latest analysis of the grocery property market shows that the number of abandoned schemes rose by 13.3 per cent in the second half of 2015. Proposed projects [...]
UK home building nearly half the value of all construction contracts in October November 20, 2015 Housing construction comprised nearly half the value of all UK building contracts in October, totalling £3.7bn, according to the latest Economic & Construct ion Market Review from industry analysts Barbour ABI. Overall for October, the value of residential projects is the highest since Barbour ABI started tracking the series. This has been helped by a [...]
Association of British Insurers calls for better flood-risk information for UK homebuyers November 2, 2015 Nine out of ten people think flood-risk information should be included in material about properties for sale, an Association of British Insurers (ABI) survey has revealed today. The ABI also criticised property search websites and marketing materials for new builds for lacking flood-risk information. In light of the survey, the ABI is calling for more [...]
Financial Conduct Authority proposes last year’s insurance premium information should be published on renewal documents December 3, 2015 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published proposals today that would require general insurance providers to include details of last year’s premium on customer’s renewal documents. The proposals are designed to address concerns that some customers might be getting a bad deal by sticking with the same company. “We hope the proposals encourage more people to [...]