The Policy Exchange warns the next government that it must be prepared to make ‘radical and immediate cutsâ to spending, or face a debt crisis. It said that the next government must cancel the increases in spending, because it was ‘much easier not to raise spending than it is to cut it laterâ. The Policy
A retired ice-cream seller is celebrating living in the same house for a century. The 107-year-old moved to Eastbourne from Italy in 1909 when he was seven when his father opened an ice-cream parlour. Alfonso de Marco worked for the family business from the age of 14 until he retired in 1975, and has since
Research from the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA) has found that brokers expect to handle an increase in the level of activity for first-time buyers. It is the first time in 18 months that IMLA has forecast positive growth for the industry. Director of IMLA Peter Williams said that while the increase is small at
Michael Portillo former Conservative front bencher has called for an end to security of tenure, saying there are not enough social houses to keep giving people a home for life. He wants to give property to those who have connections with their local area, over new immigrants.
Communities minister Hazel Blears told parliament yesterday that economic recovery rested in giving local people more say in the decisions that affect them. She said it was vital that councils had the freedom, flexibility and ability to support local communities. Her comments came as she announced the release of a progress report into last July’s
The government has been warned that its plans to cut fuel poverty and improve energy efficiency were underfunded, untargeted and underprepared in a report from Consumer Focus. The group says the government needs to spend £3 billion a year for seven years to meet its target of ending fuel poverty in 2016, and faced a
Economists have been quick to dampen speculation that the housing market has hit the bottom after yesterday’s figures from Halifax showing house prices had increased 2.6 per cent in May. The jump in house price inflation was the third in the past 21 months, but even Halifax cautioned reading too much into the figure. Other
A Belfast house builder has been accused of faking a queue outside an estate agent to drum up interest in the development. A PR agency sent out a press released entitled: ‘Worth the wait’ along with photos of people sleeping and waiting in a queue outside the agents. The photos have been exposed as fake
A report into identifying and overcoming barriers in the delivery of zero-carbon homes by 2016 was released yesterday. The report found that people were unsure of the regulations, but a majority wanted the government to legislate for higher energy efficiency in homes.
Useful contacts related to articles in the latest edition of ROOF (Jan/Feb 2007). Compulsory purchase orders Compulsory purchase act 2004 Guidance to planning authorities from the DCLG Help for people faced with a CPO in Scotland Supporting People Official government Supporting People website, including a directory of services Scottish Executive equivalent More articles on Supporting