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 finding efficiency savings on public assets.
On Monday, Public Property UK will report extensively on the Treasury’s announcement about the coalition’s plan to cut £6bn from public spending this year. Property is expected to be high on its agenda.
To hear about …

Jodrell Bank Observatory (pictured) in Manchester has secured £3.1m public sector funding to kickstart the redevelopment of its Science Discovery Centre.
The Northwest Regional Development Agency today confirmed the funding, and said the new building would add £26m for the regional economy over the next decade.
An investment of £2.1m is to be made by the NWDA and £1m by European Regional Development Fund in the Northwest.
All work is expected to be complete by the summer of 2011.
Steven Broomhead, chief executive of the NWDA, said: “Jodrell Bank is already an icon in …

Local authorities must not wait for central government legislation before implementing Total Place, the scheme’s architect has said.
Speaking at an event for cabinet members of local authorities in London today, Michael Bichard (pictured) urged council leaders to “maintain the momentum” of Total Place in order to “convince the new government this can not be let go”.
In the Budget in March, the Labour government launched the second phase of Total Place, saying public bodies could sell up to £35bn of property through taking a more joined up approach to their assets. …

What it is
The new Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition has published a manifesto for its time in government. The long-awaited document gives detail on the outcomes of the two parties’ frantic negotiations early last week.
When it came out
20 May 2010
Why it is important
The document sets out far-reaching reforms that will affect all areas of public property, including scrapping most RDAs, abolishing regional planning, axing the Infrastructure Planning Commission and considering the case for getting rid of government offices in the regions.
To read the document in full, click here: Coalition …

The coalition has set out its detailed plans for the next five years including replacing regional development agencies with a new system of local enterprise partnerships.
The government has this morning published its 34-page document “The coalition: our programme for government” setting out the results of last week’s policy negotiations. It set out more details of its overhaul of regional development agencies, as well as confirming changes to the planning system and its plans to reduce the £163bn budget deficit.
Among its plans it said it would create Local Enterprise Partnerships – …

Liberal Democrat peer and Property Week columnist Lord Oakeshott has been appointed to chair an expert panel advising on economic policy.
The Business Advisory Group will provide informal advice on business and the economy.
Lord Oakeshott will report directly to business secretary Vince Cable.
Cable said: “Tackling the challenges facing business requires new ideas from a range of experts.
“Economic knowledge and commercial experience are essential to developing policy and this new panel will be critical to finding new ways to move the economy forward.”
Lord Oakeshott is a Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Treasury and …

The Confederation of British Industry said the government should make big cuts to its property cuts over the next five years to help reduce the impact of tax rises.
In a new policy report called Time for Action: Reforming Public Services and Balancing the Budget, the CBI gives far-reaching proposals on making public sector savings. They include a two year pay freeze, sharing more back-office services, and “better management of the government estate”.
It said the public sector should cut its property costs £2bn in total by 2015-16 by managing its estate …

The Audit Commission has today published guidance on accounting for fixed assets under International Financial Reporting Standards.
The briefing, which is called Countdown to IFRS: Accounting for non-current assets, explains what problems could arise from IFRS for property professionals in the public sector.
In February, the Audit Commission’s deputy chairman Bharat Shah announced that nearly 25% of local authority auditors had expressed concerns about the quality or timeliness of financial information delivered for audit.
He said: “Local government does have a reputation for meeting deadlines despite the odds. But under IFRS for 2009-11 …

Chancellor George Osborne plans to hold an emergency budget on 22 June, and will give more detail on his £6bn cuts plan next Monday.
Osborne said the “emergency Budget” would happen 42 days after the signing of the coalition agreement, in which the Liberal Democrats agreed to back the Conservatives’ “deep and fast” spending cuts agenda.
Cuts are expected to fall on back-office functions first, including IT and some consultancy projects.
News of an emergency budget date comes as the new government launches a detailed examination of the public finances, which is due …

On 30 April, Surrey Police Authority announced a joint venture with 13 Surrey councils to share property and other facilities. A business case will be presented to the county council in October.
The West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire and Lincolnshire forces also issued tenders for private sector advisers to review their property in April.
The plans follow a damning Confederation of British Industry (CBI) report on 31 March that said the management of England and Wales’s 43 police forces was costly and ineffective.
A Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) report on 6 May said …