With details of how the government will cut spending emerging almost daily, it’s hard to determine which announcements will be most significant.
However, a recent measure designed to slash property costs is certainly up there.
On 24 May, the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) extended its controls on new property leases and …

Stephen Foot, director at public sector consultant, Concerto Consulting, argues the government may be wrong to think about selling off property in this market. He says buying up the buildings it occupies could be a better long-term solution to the deficit.
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Should the government focus on reducing the gap between …

Liberal Democrat MPs will be crucial in the decision-making around cuts to public sector property, according to King Sturge’s head of public sector.
Richard Haynes told Public Property UK that the business secretary, Vince Cable, and the chief secretary to the Treasury, David Laws, would be the most important players in …

Paul Sutcliffe, sustainability manager at DTZ, explains the barriers to achieving the coalition’s ambitious green targets through public property. He says a fundamental shift in thinking across the public sector is needed.
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With the new coalition government determined to be the “greenest ever”, prime minister David Cameron has announced that central …

Regional planning is on its way out.  The Third Heathrow Runway is dead before take-off.  And now, coming soon to a community hall near you…
A week on from the start of the new Government, a direction is being established, first by David Cameron and then by Nick Clegg. Setting aside …

I was determined to wait until after the election before writing my next piece.  That though was over a week ago and only now do we have clarity on the form of the next administration.
My last blog was about government efficiency initiatives. Whilst I suspect Lib Dem influence in the …

On the morning of Friday 7th May, avoiding much of the hype and most of the coverage of the General Election result, I caught a flight to Vienna for a long weekend.
Amid the charms of this eminently walkable city, the clamour surrounding the main political parties here in the UK …

Anthony Coumidis, sustainability and energy director at property and construction consultancy McBains Cooper says local authorities should interpret their “10% renewables” planning rules differently to drive down the cost of green energy:
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Current planning permission regulations say new builds must generate at least 10% of their energy needs from on-site renewable …

Stephen Sorrell, head of the real estate development and regeneration at law firm Eversheds explains what the public sector can do to encourage regeneration amid the political uncertainty of the hung parliament:
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So here we are, as many suspected.
A hung parliament will naturally create uncertainty, particularly for the regeneration sector, which …

Ashley Moore, managing director of West Bay Capital, developer of 30 Pall Mall in Liverpool, explains why Liverpool should benefit from civil service relocations ahead of other cities:
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The publication of former Reed Elsevier chief executive Ian Smith’s paper, Relocation — Transforming Where and How Government Works, last month has given …