30/07/2014
Headlines
30/07/2014
UK government reshuffle Position Environment secretary
Was Owen Paterson
Planning minister
Nick Boles (now junior minister in business and education departments) Greg Barker
Energy and climate change minister
Now Liz Truss Joined Parliament in 2010 having worked for Shell and Cable & Wireless. Voted in favour of the badger culls. Role split between Brandon Lewis, Minister of State responsible for Planning and Housing, and Penny Mordaunt, junior Minister for Planning and Coastal Communities. Role split between Matthew Hancock, Minister for Energy, and Amber Rudd, Parliamentary UnderSecretary.
Junker will focus on a free trade deal with the US and development of renewable energies The new President of the EC is also likely to review rules on GM crops and comes from Luxembourg, which is anti-GM.
Farming Greening: Work Out What It Means For You – Defra guidance This new leaflet provides information on new greening rules, which are part of the Common Agricultural Policy changes. It can be used in conjunction with our greening calculator, which has now been downloaded by 4,000 people.
Organic food contains more antioxidants but less toxic metals and pesticide residues A meta-analysis by the University of Newcastle of 343 peer-reviewed publications to investigate ‘differences in composition between organic and non-organic crops/crop-based foods’ found ‘statistically significant’ differences between the production methods. Organic crops and foods have higher antioxidant activity, and lower concentrations of the potentially harmful metal Cadmium. It also found a four times higher frequency of occurrence of pesticide residues in conventional crops. The paper has attracted considerable attention, commentary and criticism.
Fall in UK dairy herd due to large drop in Scotland while elsewhere is stable The UK dairy herd fell by 1.0% in 2013, according to the Defra June Agricultural Census, to just under 2.2 million head. The drop - a 9% decrease in numbers – is almost exclusively in Scotland; this was due to a 33% drop in ‘replacements’ (cattle aged 1-2 years old) and a 9% fall in the breeding herd. Numbers in England and Wales were largely unchanged.
Property Issues Fracking in 'national parks and outstanding landscapes' will only be allowed in exceptional circumstances The Government has announced the bidding process for companies seeking licences to explore for onshore oil and gas in the UK, and has said that special areas, including Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, World Heritage Sites, and National Parks, will be protected.
Vodafone's Rural Open Sure Signal programme to improve 100 rural not-spots Vodafone has invited communities to work with their local MP to apply for this technology, that enables 3G voice services and web access on mobile devices. Up to 100 rural communities will be connected to the service. Applications close on 14 October 2014. The CLA has welcomed the initiative but said it would not solve the communications problems currently experienced in rural areas.
35,000 social rented houses lost in Britain in 2012/13, according to FT The Government’s housing policies have required social landlords to convert a proportion of their existing social housing into ‘affordable rent’ tenure, at up to 80% of market rents, in order to receive funding to build new homes. This, combined with more generous ‘right to buy’ discounts for tenants, has led to a net fall of social 1
30/07/2014
rented homes of 35,000 in 2012/13. As well as the impact on affected families, it has created an unintended hit on public finances, as housing benefit costs have risen (by 20% to £34bn since 2010), as it is used to bridge the gap between ‘affordable rents’ and what families can afford to pay. Put briefly, the system has switched from high capital grants (cut from £3bn to £450m) and low rent to low capital grants and high rent.
Residential Markets • •
•
•
•
•
• •
The UK market is looking ‘more balanced’ according to the RICS, with London losing momentum and buyers becoming more cautious; demand still outweighs supply elsewhere in the counties. (RICS) A rate rise could tip Britain back into recession due to the level of household debt, says Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, although he added that a rise was appropriate as the economy was heading ‘back to normal’. He also told MPs on the Treasury select committee that rising house prices and household debt were the biggest risk factors in the economy. (24 July) The new Deputy Governor of the Bank of England said that if UK productivity showed signs of improving, interest rates could stay low for longer, as that will reduce inflationary pressure within the economy. The effect the Mortgage Market Review has had on lending trends so far appears subtle. First-time buyers and home movers continue to be key drivers in market growth and their activity does not seem to have been noticeably disrupted. There was no cliff edge as lenders and intermediaries had been methodically working towards applying MMR changes for months leading up to implementation and the figures appear to reflect this. (CML) Lending for buy-to-let properties is recovering strongly, up 56% in April compared with a year ago, although it is still half the 2007 level. About half of this lending is for remortgaging and half for new mortgages. (CML) Fears of an interest rate rise has forced confidence in the housing market to a three-year low; the balance of people who think now is a good time to buy has fallen from 34% last quarter to just 5%. (FT) House prices across the UK will rise by 30 percent in five years as the country catches up with the capital, says CBRE. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that house prices in the UK are almost over-valued by a third. The IMF said planning bottlenecks that delay the supply of new homes and easily available credit are driving up prices.
Forestry Tree inspections: Stagecoach South Western Trains v Hind This High Court decision states that a landowner's duty of care depends on the extent of his or her resources, and that landowner should act reasonably and prudently, and obtain expert advice if it appears there may be a problem.
And finally… Welsh thong A Welsh football fan has climbed Snowdon wearing only a thong embroided with the Welsh flag and walking boots, after losing a bet on Brazil to win the World Cup. Although not done in the best possible taste, it was done for charity. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this briefing, its information may not be comprehensive and recipients should not act upon it without seeking full professional advice. If you have queries regarding any of the articles, please contact jason.beedell@smithsgore.co.uk (01733 866562) or andrew.teanby@smithsgore.co.uk (01522 507310)
2