Ethical developers rebuild property sector's reputation
While property development has long suffered an image problem — from incompetent amateurs inspired by primetime TV shows to rapacious builders devouring greenfield with poor-quality identikit estates — in reality it is a foundation of the economy. The sector provides housing, workplaces, leisure spaces, infrastructure and jobs ranging from chief executives and surveyors to carpenters and technology specialists. Now a growing wave of ethical developers is attempting to rebuild the sector's tarnished reputation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
27 minutes ago
- The Independent
Former Pizza Express boss in talks with Wildwood restaurant owner
The restaurant firm behind the Wildwood chain has said it is in talks with restaurant tycoon David Page over a deal which could see him join the company and secure new investment. Shares in the company have dropped to a record low in recent weeks in the face of tumbling revenues as it seeks to turn around its fortunes. On Monday, it confirmed it has held talks with David Page, the former boss of Pizza Express and Franco Manca owner The Fulham Shore over a move which would see him appointed to the group's board. Tasty, which also owns the Dim T brand, said it is also in talks with Fulham Shore finance director Nicholas Wong as part of the proposed deal. The group is also 'evaluating funding options' as a result, which could include raising cash through an equity placing. It comes after Sky News reported that Mr Page is seeking to secure close to £10 million in new funding from institutional investors. The report indicated that a deal could see Mr Page installed as executive chairman of Tasty and rename the business as Bow Street Group on the London Stock Exchange. Tasty, which runs 36 restaurants, saw revenues tumble by 21.9% last year due to a restructuring. Last year, the group closed 18 restaurants as part of its turnaround efforts. Shares in the company shot 81% higher to 1p following the update on Monday. This gives the company a market capitalisation worth just under £2 million.
The Independent
27 minutes ago
- The Independent
Major changes to Royal Mail delivery times take effect today
Major changes to Royal Mail's delivery times and targets have come into effect as regulator Ofcom looks to cut costs and modernise the service. From today, Royal Mail can start delivering second-class letters on alternate weekdays, instead of six days a week. The target to deliver these letters will remain within three working days of collection, but the letters will no longer ever be delivered on Saturdays. First-class post will retain its Monday to Saturday delivery. The change comes alongside a slackening of Royal Mail 's existing delivery targets. The service will now aim for 95 per cent of second-class mail to be delivered within three days, down from 98.5 per cent. Meanwhile, the delivery target for first-class post has dropped from 93 per cent delivered next-day to 90 per cent. Ofcom has said that the looser targets come with a new, enforceable backstop target to ensure that 99 per cent of mail has to be delivered no more than two days later. This is to crack down on an issue experienced by 'many people' where 'letters have taken weeks to arrive,' the regulator said. It is not expected that the reforms to second-class deliveries will take effect in all locations immediately, but will be rolled out over the next 12 to 18 months. Royal Mail has already launched pilots in 37 of its 1,200 delivery offices. The changes come after a lengthy consultation, and will help Royal Mail cut costs by between £250 million and £425 million a year, according to Ofcom. The plans met with criticism from consumer and businesses groups, alongside concerns from trade unions. Ofcom said reform of the service was needed to help Royal Mail 'survive', as people send far fewer letters and as the cost of stamps has been soaring. It added that it is launching a review of the price of stamps amid concerns over affordability, with a consultation set for next year. Natalie Black, Ofcom's group director for networks and communications, said: 'These changes are in the best interests of consumers and businesses, as urgent reform of the postal service is necessary to give it the best chance of survival. 'But changing Royal Mail's obligations alone won't guarantee a better service – the company now has to play its part and implement this effectively.' Royal Mail made a loss of £348 million in 2023-24, despite raising the cost of a first-class stamp to £1.70 following several hikes in recent years. The changes also follow recent hefty fines against Royal Mail for poor performance, with an investigation launched in May after it only delivered just over three-quarters of first-class post on time last year. The overhaul come after the recent £3.6 billion takeover of Royal Mail owner IDS by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky's EP Group, which completed in June after being cleared by the Government at the end of 2024. Mr Kretinsky – named as the new chairman of Royal Mail after the deal – has pledged to stick to the Universal Service Obligation (USO) after the takeover.
Daily Mail
28 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
New data reveals millions of Brits are holding money in cash savings
Britain has a problem. Millions of people are holding money in cash savings, and as a result are losing out on the potential long-term returns from investing. More than half of adults, 58 per cent, and equivalent to some 31.4million people are unwilling to face short-term losses on investments because they have low 'emotional' capacity for risk, new data from Interactive Investor reveals. Of course, watching your hard-earned cash fall in value when invested is tough to take, and for many this money is needed in case of emergencies, or simply to pay for day-to-day expenses. However, a third of those who said they didn't have the emotional capacity to take investment risk, as many as nine million people, do have the financial resilience to do so. Interactive Investor said this leads to these people 'under-investing', with 71 per cent of the 3,000 people surveyed owning no investments outside of their pension. Richard Wilson, chief executive of Interactive Investor , said: 'Our research has unearthed a safety-first instinct among savers that presents a serious challenge for the UK. 'Millions of people have the financial capacity to invest, but don't believe it's worth the risk - over a lifetime that's likely to have a serious impact on their financial resilience. 'The dangers of not taking any risk are fast climbing up the political and regulatory agenda, and analysis shows that Britain has the lowest levels of equity ownership outside of pensions of any G7 country, with a disproportionate amount in cash and property.' In fact, as few as 12 per cent of people have a high emotional capacity for risk. A slightly higher proportion, 19 per cent, had a high risk tolerance. That phrase refers to how willing people are to accept the possibility of losses in favour of higher returns in the long term. Still, around 57 per cent of people still scored low for risk tolerance, meaning that they aren't willing to take risks for rewards in the long term, even when financially stable. Greg Davies, head of behavioural finance at Oxford Risk, said: 'Most people invest too little and take less risk than they could safely afford. This isn't about logic - it's about emotion. Emotional discomfort with short-term market ups and downs leads even financially resilient investors to underinvest. 'For those with high financial capacity, the emotional gap is often greatest: they could afford to aim higher, but their feelings hold them back.' Data from the Bank of England reveals that in May an eye-watering £280billion worth of cash was sitting in UK bank accounts earning no interest. The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has launched a campaign to promote retail investing among ordinary people, promoting investing over holding large sums of money in cash. Meanwhile, 'targeted support' reforms will come into play next year, offering tailored recommendations based on what people in similar financial circumstances are doing with their money. Along with this came fears that the Chancellor would scrap the cash Isa in a bid to push more towards investing. On the news that this wouldn't be the case - for now at least - savers breathed an audible sigh of relief. At the same time though, many resigned themselves to continuing to miss out on much higher returns. Interestingly, just three per cent said they would have a higher tolerance for investing if cash Isa tax benefits were slashed. Meanwhile, 41 per cent said they would invest if they had more money, while 16 per cent said they would do so if they understood investments better. While it Is recommended that savers only invest cash that they can afford to lose, as well as making sure that they build up an emergency pot and cash savings before doing so, many are sitting on cash pots earning no interest.
