Opinion – Page 631
-
Comment
Just cool it
A draft delay protocol is supposed to take the heat out of the contentious area of delay. But as it stands, it could simply makes things worse
-
Comment
Same old precedent
In the old adversarial world, sneaky contractual devices were part of the territory. But such things are soon to be relegated to the dustbin of history – aren't they?
-
Comment
An expensive encore
Tony Bingham tells the story of the pianist whose basement dampproof system failed, the court case that ensued, and the intriguing role eggs and dimples played in it
-
Comment
Fairness and force
Last month, Dominic Helps suggested that there was a judicial backlash against adjudication and cited five cases as evidence. None bears examination
-
Comment
Is that the time?
Labour’s chance to deliver its £19bn investment in housing, schools, hospitals and transport is rapidly evaporating. Whitehall officials are muttering that without spectacular acceleration in the rate of spending, only a fraction of the planned facilities will be open when Tony Blair goes to the polls in 2005-6. The first ...
-
Comment
The snobs' barricade
Labour seems to have no intention of providing shelter for those unable to provide it for themselves – and one reason is that we don't really want it to
-
Comment
How to stay lucky
Employer insolvency hurts – but thinking ahead can help spare contractors some of the pain
-
Comment
Arbitrary justice
Be warned. If you deny the existence of a contract, you could jeopardise agreements within it, such as your right to settle a dispute through arbitration
-
Comment
A virtue of necessity
"Does it stack up?" might not only refer to the technical challenge of developing prefabricated building systems to produce modern homes.
-
Comment
Is prefabrication the solution to the undersupply of housing? - For
James Pickard is in no doubt
-
Comment
Is prefabrication the solution to the undersupply of housing? - Against
Richard Hough thinks it sounds the death knell for choice
-
Comment
Of apes, men and swine
This is a view of the ugly face of construction, where the strong shaft the weak, the weak detest the strong and nobody is on anybody else's side
-
Comment
Who prepares wins
Mediation might promise much but, without careful preparation, there will be too much to cover and the process dissolves into a futile slanging match
-
Comment
An illegal dilemma
It was apposite that construction minister Brian Wilson should make immigration the main subject of his first Building column (page 31). The issue is one of the most vexatious facing his government – the latest furore erupted last week when David Blunkett suggested educating the children of asylum seekers in ...
-
Comment
Do your groundwork
Contractors must be sure at tender stage of the terrain they are expected to work on – or they could find themselves in a legal minefield later on
-
Comment
Amnesty international?
In the first of a regular series, the construction minister discusses the pros and cons of legitimising the many illegal immigrants on UK building sites
-
Comment
Don't do it Tony's way
The government knows what is wrong with the planning system and is trying to put it right. But are its solutions the right ones? Probably not, says Gareth Capner
-
Comment
Back-to-back basics
No apologies for bringing up a fundamental problem with construction contracts: they don't work very well. In fact, the answer may be to radically change them …