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News Release from: Chartered Institute of Building [CIOB] | Subject: Maintaining momentum of infrastructure investment
Edited by the Buildingtalk Editorial
Team on 29 March 2006
Maintaining momentum of infrastructure
investment
A Budget aimed at improving the economic climate for industry.
It was in general a Budget aimed at improving the economic climate for industry The Chancellor's announcement that public investment in the infrastructure is slated to rise from £26 billion this year to £29 billion the next and more thereafter must be encouraging for the construction industry
This article was originally published on Buildingtalk on 12 Mar 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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The Chancellor indeed promised in his Budget speech that to help finance new infrastructure, his policy is that local communities should retain more of the planning gains generated in their area.
But many in the industry are wondering how he is going do it, because they are convinced the proposed planning gain supplement will be an inefficient instrument to effect the change.
Fortunately influential voices in the development business are virtually unanimous in pointing out more effective ways in which the government can meet its aims in this fundamental area of economic policy.
The Chancellor would be wise to listen to them.
He would not want to be the man who promised an additional 100,000 houses annually, only to discover too late that this admirable ambition had been blocked by the state of the land market.
The Budget documents contain evidence that the Treasury does listen to what people say in this area of policy, no doubt because the formation of real estate investment trusts is seen as a means of attracting more capital into the house building business.
The original REIT formula has been modified in consultation with industry to make the scheme more acceptable to investors.
A similar willingness to re-examine the planning gain supplement would be equally welcome.
In fact his brief Budget statement on PGS indicated that having seen the response to the consultation, Mr.Brown may well be prepared to think again on this crucially important aspect of planning policy.
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