Opinion

Beth Bundonis is regional managing director for the East Midlands at Lovell Last month’s news of the closure of Women into Construction was met with understandable dismay across the sector. Over 16 years, the organisation championed gender equality in our industry. It leaves a massive gap, and we’ll now need…

Alister Grey is managing director of technology and manufacturing at Mace Construct When we think about the cloud, generative artificial intelligence or 5G, we think of abstract things in a digital world. We don’t think of the huge physical infrastructure required to support them. “The demand for data centres exceeded…

David Savage is a partner and head of construction engineering & projects at Charles Russell Speechlys Grenfell Tower was an all too typical project for its level of value, procured on the same flawed basis of construction economics and pressures that are still recognisable everywhere. It was also discharged against…

Amelia Woodley is executive ESG director at Speedy Hire The construction sector has been historically responsible for significant damage caused to biodiversity and nature, with built environments accounting for nearly 30 per cent of biodiversity loss globally. Considering that the UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries on earth,…

Ali Perry is chief executive of the British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association (BAFSA)  BAFSA hopes that the requirement for sprinklers in all new care homes in England heralds a new approach by the government towards the protection of the built environment that considers and listens to expert advice. As a…

Cut-and-carve projects are nothing new. But regular readers of Construction News will have noticed retrofit projects – particularly of central London shops and offices – featuring increasingly frequently in our pages. As the recent planning battle over Marks & Spencer’s scheme to replace its flagship Oxford Street store showed, getting…

Elouisa Crichton (pictured) is an employment law partner at Dentons. Additional input from construction law partners Akin Akinbode and Mark Macaulay, and managing construction practice development lawyer Tracey Summerell The government recently announced plans to allow workers the right to request a four-day working week, as an extension to existing…

Haman Manak is the procurement director at Stanmore For the past 18 months, we’ve all felt the effects of the economic headwinds. Under the tough, high interest rate climate, some well-known peers went insolvent – and activity stats across our sector have looked abnormally meagre. “The government cannot overlook or…

The government faces a dilemma. Should it stick with the system reforms emanating from the Hackitt and Morrell/Day reports? Or embark on the radical new approach recommended by the Grenfell Inquiry Phase Two report? Reform means continuing to drive through the Building Safety Act secondary legislation and tightening oversight of…

Lucy Clarke is chief executive of recruitment firm Fixed Construction Receiving construction training while earning a salary in Canada, Australia or New Zealand for two years is a very attractive proposition. Faced with that option versus those available in the UK, it’s highly likely that young people aged 18-35 would…