Although wage growth and employment are both taking positive turns as the economic situation improves, many UK families are still struggling to make ends meet. Zero hours contracts and underemployment mean that some have no choice but to rely on welfare benefits in order to pay for essentials such as utility bills and... Read More
Creative and artistic ventures — often ignored by banks and other businesses — could thrive as part of a rural enterprise hub, researchers have claimed. Researchers from Newcastle University’s Centre for Rural Economy found that enterprise hubs could go a long way to helping digital, media and creative industries achieve... Read More
More than 30 bids have been received for the multi-billion Euro sell off of property loans issued by the now defunct Anglo Irish Bank. The Anglo Irish interest in the Whitgift Centre is also for sale The two commercial property loan portfolios — dubbed Project Rock and Project Salt — have attracted global interest including bids... Read More
George Osborne has given his seal of approval to Thomas Heatherwick’s Thames Garden Bridge project. Thomas Heatherwick (right) in conversation with the Duke of York The Chancellor said that the bridge would draw "visitors from across the globe" as he launched the fundraising campaign with £30 million. This is enough funding to see... Read More
British businesses and commercial property owners must improve the energy efficiency of their buildings or risk missing significant economic and environmental opportunities. The warning comes in a report, published jointly by the Westminster Sustainable Business Forum and Carbon Connect, which claims that benefits such as reduced... Read More
The Irish division of the international property giant CBRE plunged into the red last year with pre-tax losses of €4.57m (£3.82m). In its annual return CBRE Ireland claimed revenues for 2012 had tumbled by 34 per cent to €7.5m (£6.27m), prompting a pre-tax loss after booking an onerous lease provision of €2.56m (£2.14m) and... Read More
Several points from the Autumn Statement have proven fairly controversial, with the issue of business rates being the key sticking point for many experts within the retail industry. Although Chancellor George Osborne capped rates increases at 2 per cent, former Wickes and Iceland chief executive Bill Grimsey, among others, believe that... Read More
Two speculative projects are underway in Bristol after five years of zero-growth in the commercial market. Work has now started at 2 Glass Wharf on a joint development for Salmon Harvester and NFU Mutual. The Swedish-based Skanska group also has an office project in progress at the city’s Queen Square. The decision by both developers... Read More
Manufacturing has once more become one of Britain’s largest sources of income, with the industry behind only the services sector in terms of growth and employment. This has led some of the country’s largest manufacturers to seek rapid expansion in order to keep up with demand from both domestic and overseas clients. JCB has... Read More
Twelve months of preparatory work has started on Edinburgh’s biggest commercial development for more than a decade. The first stage of the Scottish capital’s £200m Haymarket regeneration involves the reinforcement of the Victorian railway tunnels adjacent to the city’s central station. Part of a car park above the tunnels will... Read More
As previously reported, charity shops have recently become the target of widespread criticism as the debate about the future of the high street continues. Due to business rates relief and other financial advantages afforded to charitable organisations, two different reports conducted since 2011 have cited charity shops as a cause, as... Read More
A leading property company has linked its network of 15,000 staff to the cloud as part of a “global technology upgrade”. Cushman & Wakefield — which has offices in London, Shanghai and New York — decided on the cutting edge update to help it stay ahead in what it sees as an increasingly competitive commercial market. In a... Read More
A new company is taking advantage of Ireland’s recovering property market by announcing plans for a €350m initial public offering. Hibernia will become only the country’s third Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) but has already attracted cornerstone investors for €124.5m of its €350m capitalisation target after kicking off... Read More
In a bid to meet pledges regarding parental rights, Prime Minister David Cameron has been examining options allowing fathers more time to bond with their new born children. Although paternity leave was increased last year in order to help meet these targets, critics believe that this does not go far enough in promoting strong family... Read More
After years of empty and mothballed floorspace, Newcastle has recorded its highest office take-up since the start of the recession. Although overall re-lets for Tyneside are down at just 178,071sq ft — lower than the average quarterly take-up rate for the last two years — Newcastle city centre continues to out-perform with a record... Read More
London’s Elephant & Castle shopping centre has been purchased by developer Delancey for a sum of £80 million. The firm intends to transform the 1960s concrete mall as part of its South Village scheme, with the property, once described as an architectural blunder, set to become a central aspect of the three tower... Read More
With sunny weather bringing record numbers of tourists to the UK in the summer, retailers and leisure businesses in seaside towns especially will be looking forward to 2014 and hoping to build on these positive foundations and encourage growth in regional areas. One lucrative investment for those keen to capitalize on Britain’s... Read More
The Prince of Wales has called for the introduction of a development time limit covering historic properties. The Prince believes a change in the law would force owners to take a responsible and sensitive approach to redevelopment, and that those who neglect historic buildings should be compelled to forfeit them. He said the proposal... Read More
DVD and games rental chain Blockbuster entered administration for the second time this year in October, with mass store closures across the country greatly affecting employees in the run up to Christmas. Unfortunately, this trend appears set to continue with administrators from Moorfields Corporate Recovery announcing the closure of a further... Read More
In its first venture outside Indian property company Lodha has purchased the Canadian High Commission building in London for £306m. The Mumbai-based group beat off six rivals — including bidders from the Middle East, Asia and Russia— to snap up the iconic MacDonald House in London’s Grosvenor Square. The deal gives the company... Read More
The country’s first digital shopping wall — which aims to give smaller businesses a virtual presence on the high street — has been launched on Tyneside. An empty storefront on South Shield’s King Street — once the town’s retail hub — has been remodelled and dressed to promote four local companies. Included in the display... Read More
The recession may have officially ended several months ago, yet the financial pressure upon UK households still continues to have an impact on consumer spending habits. A new trend, for consumers to actively pursue budget-friendly purchases wherever possible, has seen chains such as Lidl and Aldi flourish while more traditional leaders... Read More
