The news that the Government has delayed implementation of the Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements of the 2021 Environment Act prompted the posting of the blog below, which I had recently written mainly for myself, to clarify and formalise some of my thoughts. For many developments, the delayed implementation is only three months, but Nationally Significant Infrastructure Developments (NSIPs) won’t […]

In September 2023, two United Nations agencies published a report which is crucial to the future of both human civilisation and nature on this planet. It received precious little publicity. Synergy Solutions for a World in Crisis proposed we should make a start on tackling both climate goals and the UN’s 15-year old Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) together. Both climate […]

Any aspiring author seeking a title for their book should take inspiration from the portrait of the 1930s by the broadcaster and journalist René Cutforth. His was a broad view of the decade, though one written from the perspective of someone who saw it end in disaster and war. He called it Later Than We Thought. I’m starting to wonder […]

Dysfunctional Markets:  It would be inaccurate, and wrong, to bundle all land owners, developers and their consultants into the same basket accusation of entirely selfish motives. However, when it comes to the housing market, the development sector has for many years successfully appropriated the widely accepted shortage of suitable housing to advance their own interests and maximise their profits. Fair […]

Michael Gove began his keynote speech on housing this week with a reminder. “Housing policy – the building of new homes, the stewardship of existing properties, the planning of our towns, the fundamental landscape of our lives – requires long-term thinking,” he said. “And a long-term plan.” Which is ironic when you think about it, given that this Parliament has […]