Build, Baby, Build: Why this election will change the politics of housing June 19, 2024 There’s good reasons to be optimistic that the next government will finally get a grip on the housing crisis. First, all parties have made manifesto commitments on building targets. Second, Labour voters are much more positively disposed to development, argues Shreya Nanda The housing crisis is a key issue facing the country at this election. [...]
Build, Baby, Build: The rental market and the rise of the DFL (that’s down from London) June 19, 2024 A rental market that drains bank balances and instils constant dread of eviction is driving people away from London. The capital can’t survive unless it can sustain its young workers, says Morgan Jones I lived in London for the best part of a decade, and for most of that time assumed that I probably always [...]
Build, Baby, Build: Why stamp duty is Britain’s worst tax June 18, 2024 Stamp duty isn’t just unpopular, it’s gumming up the housing market and leaving people stuck in properties totally unsuitable for their needs. The next government must raise the threshold or ditch it altogether, says Emma Revell The housing crisis is, at its heart, about supply. For decades, we simply have not built enough homes to [...]
Build, Baby, Build: The private sector alone won’t fix the housing crisis June 18, 2024 The private sector has never delivered the 300,000 homes a year the government says we need; local authorities must be part of the solution, say Gideon Salutin and Niamh O Regan All the major parties are promising more homes at this election. Labour has promised 300,000 a year for England, while the Conservatives have pledged [...]
Build, Baby, Build: London doesn’t have to be so expensive June 18, 2024 London built the world’s first underground railway and the beautiful, beloved mansion blocks of Chelsea and Marylebone. We can do it again, says Sam Dumitriu Rents in London are now so high that a one bed in the capital will set you back more than a three bedroom will in any other region of England. [...]
Build, Baby, Build: You don’t solve a supply crisis by juicing demand June 18, 2024 Both parties are making big promises on housebuilding, but the policies being put forward are nothing new at best and actively harmful at worst, says Henry Hill This election is an important milestone in this country’s long-running housing crisis, because it is probably the first one in which both major parties have formally acknowledged that [...]
Psychogeography: How to reclaim the urban environment June 9, 2024 On its most basic level, ‘psychogeography’ is a rather grand term for exploring how urban spaces make us feel.
Washed away: The strange, nostalgic world of public swimming pools June 8, 2024 The swimming pool is a place of both solitude and community, a strange human ritual practised from Manchester to Montpellier and New Delhi
New data centre planned for London amid ‘significant lack of power’ June 7, 2024 The demand for data centres is rapidly rising. AI training and large language models, such as ChatGPT and Gemini, require enormous amounts of power.
Could Manchester eclipse London as the UK’s skyscraper capital? June 5, 2024 For years London has stood alone as the preeminent home to the largest and most visually-striking skyscrapers in the UK - but could that be about to change?