Opinion – Page 379
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Comment
What revelations are there in the insolvency figures?
IfPestilence is the diseased financial systemWar is contractual and trade disputesFamine is the lack of ordersThenDeath must be measured by the insolvency figures.And they do look a bit on the pale side.The base figures show a 56% increase in the number of liquidations across all sectors in the first quarter ...
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Comment
Mortgage lending a bit better but still pretty much on the floor
The Bank of England's release on mortgage lending does show a futher slight rise for March.The figures show mortgage approvals for house purchases rose to 39,230 in March from 37,716 in February. And this puts the level of approvals reasonably well up from the bottom reached last November of 27,000.But ...
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Comment
Short and tweet
Dispatches from the Twitter social networking site: Liz Male, PR consultant specialising in construction and sustainability
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CommentA tricky hand well played
Darling’s Budget was about as good as it could have been under the circumstances – but the real challenges are only just beginning
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CommentBuilding buys a pint … for the Anyjob team
It has taken two-and-a-half pints, but we are finally off the subject of mackerel fishing in Cornwall. Cue a collective sigh of relief as, after a slow start, the chat hots up
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CommentMetamorphoses
We bring you tales of strange transformations this week as the industry tries alchemy, women turn into angels, rich people lose vast sums of money and Building’s front cover is vandalised by a reader
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Comment
Too little, too late
With reference to your article on the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) funding situation (3 April, page 24), it should also be pointed out that an aspect that contributed greatly to the overspend on many colleges was the LSC’s decision in the summer of 2004 to not approve funding for ...
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CommentWe fight the law …
Reading the story in Building on 9 April (BDP faces £4.6m claim over Wimbledon media centre), I was disappointed, but sadly not surprised, to see yet another high-profile court case involving latent defects
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Comment
We fight the law and the law wins
I was pleased to read James Bessey’s article (How to look good in public, 9 April, page 47)
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Comment
Foul-weather friends
Working as a senior procurement manager for a national housebuilder, I wholeheartedly concur with the frustration felt at how those offering trade insurance are reacting in these straitened times (17 April, page 28)
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Comment
Emirates united
Your article of “Why we are not Dubai” (17 April, page 32) took many of my comments out of context.
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Comment
Tools for the job
Tony Bingham, in his column on 3 April (page 56), made reference to “that wonderful book … A Dummies’ Guide to Risk and Shafting” to help contractors survive the recession.
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Comment
Terminological imbroglios
Robert Adam (17 April, page 22) must move in very eccentric – and exclusive – circles
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CommentWe need better politicians
Surely efficiency savings have to be made by working with the supply chain: after all, the government has been saying just this for 10 years
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CommentL is for limitation rules
A-Z of construction law Our beginner’s guide to legal basics covers L this week – the limitation on the time a party can claim damages
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CommentToo much information
It has become common for clients to send bidders so much data that nobody has the time to produce tenders properly. Now there’s a campaign to change all that
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Comment
Further clues on house price movements from Land Registry
The latest Land Registry figures for house prices show a further fall in March of 0.4%.These figures appear consistent with the general picture emerging from the various surveys of falling prices, but an easing in the rate of decline.
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Comment
Home prices slide but rate of decline has eased, says Nationwide
The latest Nationwide data on house prices is yet another pointer to suggst the slide in house prices is far from over.The April figure saw the average price fall by 0.4% in April after the upward blip of 0.9% a month earlier.The optimists may suggest this is a bottoming out ...
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Comment
Is Mrs Pidgley missing her horses?
Earlier this week the wife of Berkeley boss Tony Pidgley sold 250,000 shares in the company. It leaves her with just over half a million but at £9.60 a pop she netted £2.4m from the deal.The wife of FD and Pidgley protege Rob Perrins offloaded the same amount and director ...