March 2005 - News from the UK

News: Timber Frame & Construction News

• New Appointment for Timber Frame
  (25 March 2005, Media Centre)
  A national Timber Frame construction firm has appointed Paul Davies to head the expansion of its new regional office. Davies will be responsible for developing timber frame project management work in the North West Region, West Midlands and North Wales, and to oversee national prestigious projects.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Draft Corporate Manslaughter Bill gets full construction industry support
  (24 March 2005, Contract Journal)
  New laws to prosecute companies and organisations whose gross failure at senior management level results in a fatality have been described as a "significant breakthrough" by the construction unions today (Thursday).
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Griffiths launches consultation to improve construction payment
  (22 March 2005, Contract Journal)
  Construction minister Nigel Griffiths has today (Tuesday) launched a joint consultation on 'Improving Payment Practices in the Construction Industry'. (Benfield ATT comment: Is this the end of JCT as we know it? Let's hope so!)
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• 'Stop Pouring Petrol On Flaming House Prices' - Urges Housing Expert
  (18 March 2005, Construction News UK)
  "Immediate action - not words - is needed to deliver development land on which to build desperately needed new homes", claimed Professor Michael Benfield at a conference this week.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• 'Land Swap Levy' to Fund Rural Affordable Housing?
  (8 March 2005, Green Building Press)
  Alan Whitehead, MP for Southampton West, is calling for a "land swap levy" to fund rural affordable housing. The principle of the "land swap levy" takes an element of "hope value" from the uplift in value gained from a change of land use in rural areas and sets it to work on the development of long term affordable rural housing.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Green Self -Builders Win Top Award
  (8 March 2005, Green Building Press)
  A couple who designed their own 'green' home and had it built in just 65 days by a team of four have won Norwich and Peterborough Building Society's Eco Self-Build competition for individually designed and built, energy-saving homes.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Free CPD for Professionals - Sponsored by Wood. for Good.
  (4 March 2005, TRADA)
  wood. for good. and TRADA have joined forces again this year to offer more FREE training courses and CPD talks in various regions around the UK. The programme includes courses tailored towards the needs of architects, engineers and timber frame construction professionals.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• New environmental section on askTRADA
  (4 March 2005, TRADA)
  TRADA has launched a new environmental section on the askTRADA website underlining the importance of careful forest management. The most frequently asked questions about forest management and chain of custody are answered.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Minister praises London efforts and calls for energy efficient buildings
  (3 March 2005, EDIE)
  Sustainable Energy Minister Lord Whitty has praised London's efforts to minimise its impact on global warming at a conference this week.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Plans underway for next AECB annual conference
  (2 March 2005, aecb.net)
  Regulars will know that the AECB go to great lengths to find suitable and interesting locations. Previous venues include; CAT, the Earth Centre, Weald and Downland Museum and the National Botanic Garden Wales. If you know a suitable venue for 2005 please email network@aecb.net.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Early fire engineering design saves thousands of pounds
  (2 March 2005, TRADA)
  The word "consultant" for some people means "expensive". Employing an independent consultant to advise on the whole fire protection strategy for the building could save money "in our experience a substantial amount" both in the short and long term.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• House prices show slight increase
  (2 March 2005, BBC News)
  Prices of homes in the UK rose a seasonally adjusted 0.5% in February, says the Nationwide building society.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  

News: Environment, Climate & Attitudes

• UK and Brussels clash over Emissions
  (29 March 2005, The Guardian p13)
  The government is continuing to clash with the European Commission over a second environmental directive over greenhouse gases. Mark Milner reports that the UK is seeking to adopt a "hybrid" version of the large combustion plant directive, which covers the emissions from Britain's coal-fired power stations and from industrial plants that burn large quantities of coal.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Government's Sustainable Communities Plan - unsustainable in present form
  (25 March 2005, EDIE)
  Back in October 2003 the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister published the Sustainable Communities Plan (SCP) setting out the Government's long-term plans to tackle the UK's housing needs, particularly in the South East where demand massively exceeds supply. Since then the Report has been the subject of much debate and criticism. Now the heavyweight House of Commons Environmental Select Committee has entered the fray with a swingeing attack on Government strategy in its new Report Housing: Building a Sustainable Future.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Trading schemes key to losing UK's dirty reputation
  (24 March 2005, EDIE)
  Integrated trading schemes will now increasingly be at the heart of future environmental policies and legislation, according to waste experts.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• London marks progress towards becoming a Fairtrade city
  (11 March 2005, EDIE)
  London's real progress towards becoming a Fairtrade city has been announced by Deputy Mayor Nicky Gavron, but the message resounding through City Hall is that more must still be done to secure the title.
  >> Read full article
  
• Businesses must work to tackle CO2 crisis, says TUC
  (11 March 2005, EDIE)
  Britain's workplaces must get serious about reducing waste and conserving energy in order to ensure that the UK reaches its 2010 target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the TUC warned this week.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Government stresses local responsibility in sustainable development strategy
  (11 March 2005, EDIE)
  The Government has pledged to lead by example in its new sustainable development strategy, 'Securing the Future', launched this week.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  

• EU ministers seek deeper cuts in greenhouse gas emissions
  (11 March 2005, The Financial Times p7)
  Just a month after the Kyoto protocol came into force European Union ministers have endorsed an ambitious round of cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, writes Fiona Harvey. This is an attempt by the EU to maintain its leadership on efforts to curtail climate change and increase pressure on the US to join the Kyoto process.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Environmental Rights Will Become Law
  (9 March 2005, Green Building Press)
  The Government has, at last, ratified the Aarhus Convention, formally known as the UN/ECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Friends of The Earth Query The New 'Green' Manifesto
  (8 March 2005, New Builder Magazine)
  Government commitment to sustainable development will ultimately be judged by actions not words, say Friends of the Earth. The group said that the real test will be seen in specific future decisions and policies, such as this month's budget, and whether government targets, especially those for reductions in carbon dioxide, are met.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• London's black cabs go carbon neutral
  (4 March 2005, EDIE)
  One of the largest fleets of iconic black cabs in the UK capital of London has announced that it is going carbon neutral.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• UK seas 'in peril' - says report
  (2 March 2005, BBC News)
  Fishing and climate change are harming UK marine life, according to a report by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Impact of Extreme Climatic Events on the Construction Industry
  (1 March 2005, AECB)
  There are immediate mainstream accepted forecasts and longer term less quantifiable effects of climate change. Dealing with the first, On the basis of current climate trends, insurance industry actuaries have predicted that there will be a 50% increase in atmospheric depressions crossing the Northern Atlantic. There will be an overall increased rainfall, flooding and storm force winds as well as an increased risk of 'extreme' weather events...
  

News: Responsible Business and the Community

• Gender split still thrives at work
  (31 March 2005, The Guardian p9)
  A study published today by the Equal Opportunities Commission reveals that young people entering work are facing "no-go areas" in key occupations because Britain is still failing to tackle gender barriers to employment opportunities. Lucy Ward adds that some sectors remain almost exclusively male or female.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Labour's 'Family-Friendly' employer
  (29 March 2005, Financial Times p4)
  This article by David Turner looks at workers' entitlements under the Labour government. In the first term the party passed a torrent of new employment rights. During their second term "work-life balance" and "family friendly" entered the "political and business lexicons".
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Business to be made the apple of teacher's eye
  (22 March 2005, Financial Times p3)
  Improvements in workforce skills will be "accelerated" and training bodies made more user-friendly, Ruth Kelly has promised, in moves that signal the education department will be more focused on the needs of business.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Unions urged to help improve skills
  (21 March 2005, Financial Times p4)
  Funding and high-profile political support is being made available to trade unions by the government in an attempt to develop schemes to lure workers into education and training. Miranda Green reports that Ruth Kelly, the education secretary, will announce plans today for a '£4.5m union academy which is expected to help unions set and deliver the national skills strategy after overcoming scepticism about their role in workplace education.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• How ethics codes can be made to work
  (7 March 2005, Financial Times p14)
  Alison Maitland says initiatives to regulate the behaviour of employees
  must not only be in place but must also be implemented correctly. This article looks at how companies are "again reaching for the ethics toolbox" giving the examples of Citigroup and Ogilvy & Mather.
  >> Read full article
  
  
  
• Maternity move will make life even more complicated, say small businesses
  (2 March 2005 - Financial Times, p4)
  Small businesses that claim they are already drowning in red tape hit out at Labour's plans to extend maternity benefits to employees.
  >> Read full article
  

News: Finance & Economy

• Evidence fails to prove case for flexibility
  (2 March 2005 - Financial Times, p4)
  The Centre for Economic Policy Research has found that the extra costs involved in extending paid maternity leave may affect employees who have to suffer from lower wages writes Scheherazade Daneshku.
  >> Read full article
  

Feature Article of the Month - Builder & Engineer Magazine; Timber Frame Supplement

Seasonal, 2005

Expert Viewpoint: Dr Michael Benfield

Dr Michael Benfield is one of the leading Timber Frame Construction Experts. He spoke to Builder & Engineer about how the Construction of more Timber-based buildings will help meet the ambitious carbon emission targets set by the Government...