Opinion

Clive Feeney is group managing director of LHC Procurement Group Labour’s determination to build 1.5 million homes over the lifetime of this parliament has created a national debate and one crucial question: how? There are several obstacles. First, there’s the construction skills shortage: the Home Builders Federation warns that for…

James Eager, director at Eric Wright Construction According to the latest figures from the S&P Global UK Construction Purchase Managers’ Index (PMI), the construction growth rate has reached a two-year high, providing yet another indication of the sector’s resilience and adaptability, regardless of the many negative pressures it faces.  “We…

Adrian Bingham is a partner and Olivia Barrett is a trainee solicitor at Collyer Bristow There has long been recognition that claimants’ rights of action should not remain open indefinitely. The first statute to address this systematically was in 1623, and its six-year limitation period for contracts and actions of…

Andy Murdoch is a partner at engineering, design and advisory practice Buro Happold The announcement on 30 July by the chancellor Rachel Reeves to cancel several major highway projects and conduct a wider review of ‘unfunded projects’ has had a significant, unexpected impact on road users, local communities and the…

Anya Blanchfield is a sustainability engineer and net-zero consultant at property and construction consultancy McBains, and a BREEAM Assessor, working on decarbonisation assessments of existing buildings The 500,000 buildings on the National Heritage List for England are a vital part of our nation’s cultural heritage. One of the most important…

Nick Gray​​ is UK and Europe chief operating officer at consultancy Currie & Brown Between 1997 and 2010, more than 700 new public sector construction projects were successfully delivered, improving the fabric of many key sectors of the economy, such as education and healthcare. Arguably, the delivery of many of…

Hannah Tsurkan is the founder of construction project management company Agora Project Management   As the UK pushes towards its ambitious 2050 net-zero target, the construction and demolition industry stands at a critical juncture. Despite significant progress being made, our sector contributes 60 per cent of all waste in the UK,…

Samantha Knight is group HR director at housing developer MJ Gleeson Every company has a responsibility to actively participate in the dialogue surrounding equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), and to contribute to its implementation in the workplace. EDI isn't just a buzzword – it is a cornerstone of future success…

Matt Tallon is sustainability director at FM Conway The idea of circularity is gaining ground in construction and in business generally but, sadly, talk isn’t always translating into action. The Circle Economy Foundation’s 2024 Circularity Gap Report shows that the world is actually going backwards on resource conservation and reuse.…

Calum Forsyth is managing director of materials manufacturer H+H UK Despite millions of pounds of government investment, the modular housing industry has seen a series of failures over the past 12 months. Are we on the wrong track with this approach to solving the housing crisis? The concept of houses…