by Bethany Vann | 18 Sep 23 | Landscape Architecture, Nature & Biodiversity, News, Sustainability, Topics
The governments’ recent plans to relax restrictions on water pollution has been blocked by the House of Lords.
The government put forward plans to remove EU-era ‘nutrient neutrality’ rules last month, with the intention to encourage housebuilding amid current sector slump, and support its own housebuilding target.
UK housebuilding has fallen to its lowest level in over a decade, with only 898 major residential projects approved between April and June this year, says trade radio station Fix Radio.
Approval rates for major residential projects between April and June has fallen by 11%, in comparison to the same time last year; it’s the first quarterly figure to drop below 1,000 since 2012.
This decline has been accredited by Fix Radio to policy uncertainty, created by failed attempts at planning reforms. In a report by the National Planning Barometer, six in 10 participants said their planning teams lacked the resources to do the most efficient job, citing a “fundamental difference of opinion” between planners and councillors.
Multiple reports from key players in the sector attribute the decline to current state of the housing market, higher borrowing costs, overwhelming work schedule as a result of a smaller workforce, and new directives such as the ULEZ, which has left 27%% of SMEs in the trade on the verge of breaking point, says Fix Radio.
An additional 225,000 workers are needed by 2027 to keep up with the UK’s construction demand and outlined targets.
“The government target of 300,000 houses to be built per year, even before Covid, was extremely unrealistic for a couple of reasons,” says Fix Radio presenter, Clive Holland. “After Brexit, a lot of our support teams went back to their own countries, we didn’t have enough people in our industry, we’re already short of trades people as it is.”
The restriction removal could have seen over 100,000 new builds previously delayed, greenlit between now and 2030, with billions in estimated economy contributions and hundreds of supply chain jobs.
by Bethany Vann | 29 Aug 23 | Commercial Landscaping, Long Reads, News, Sustainability, Website Exclusive
The expansion of the ULEZ is causing concern across London’s trade sector as the added charge inflicts unsustainable financial pressure on a number of trade businesses, and for good reason.
As of today, drivers of non-compliant vehicles will have to pay £12.50 a day to travel in the now affected areas, which cover a majority of Greater London.
The charge, which is equivalent to more than £3k a year, is already incurring multi-level knock-on effects as tradespeople increase their prices to compensate.
According to Fix Radio, 25% of construction workers say they have lost work as a direct result of the increase in their prices to cover the additional charge.North London builder Danny Madden told Metro he has lost clients after they could no longer afford to pay, and has considered whether carrying on the three-generation business is “worth it.” He said that he was ‘forced to scrap’ his old business van and buy a ULEZ compliant truck, costing him £24,000, and that his business is not the only one under threat of closure as a result of the expansion.
The expansion is supposedly to tackle London’s air pollution, with the intention of improving people’s health and alleviating pressure on the NHS, as well as decreasing the capital’s congestion and aiding the current climate emergency, says the mayor’s office.
A ULEZ scrappage scheme has been established, allowing tradespeople the opportunity to receive up to £9,000 in aid to scrape or retrofit non-compliant vehicles. The scheme offers critical support to tradespeople, but many reports highlight the maximum amount obtainable is too little when compared to the current cost of compliant vehicles.
But with the short time frame of replacing non-compliant vehicles, in addition to a cost-of-living crisis to contend with, the reality of the ULEZ expansion neglects to take into account the harsh reality many of London’s tradespeople are facing.
And it might not be quite as effective at reducing air pollution. Reports have shown the original ULEZ scheme was effective in reducing non-compliant vehicles, with 93% now meeting the cleaner standards, and over a quarter (26%) drop in NOx emissions in the original zone. The scheme has helped to “dramatically reduce air pollution” says professor Frank Kelly from the Imperial College in London. 
However, news surfaced last week that Khan’s office supposedly paid the Imperial College’s Environmental Research Group £800k, allegedly promoting Kelly’s glowing review of the zone’s effectiveness. The same department released a report in 2019 that sited a less than 3% drop in nitrogen dioxide within the original ULEZ.
With conflicting reports surfacing and more voices joining the debate, it is becoming harder to know what to believe. Ultimately the tradespeople who will be affected have three options: pay the new charge, and subsequently increase their prices to compensate, and potentially alienate customers; replace their vehicles, with or without the help of the scrappage scheme, and potentially incur more costs and delays; or cease business altogether.
Now I know, this all seems rather negative, and it’s not that I’m against a cleaner atmosphere, because ultimately until we conquer space travel and plant colonisation, we only have this one world, and we need to help it. But on the other side of that controversial coin, the everyday reality is tradespeople will suffer from this expansion, especially in the way it has been introduced. It is likely to impose knock-on effects, that in a cost-of-living and housing crisis, is only going to apply more pressure to an already fragile situation. I think the expansion is necessary, in some form.
The end goal of cleaning London’s air and reducing congestion is crucial, but now is not the appropriate time to introduce more charges.
by Bethany Vann | 21 Aug 23 | News, Sustainability, Topics |
Sadiq Khan’s office has been accused of trying to “silence” a scientific report that questions how beneficial the controversial ULEZ charge is for the environment.
It is reported that more than £800k has been paid to the Imperial College’s Environmental Research Group since 2021, with director of the group, professor Frank Kelly, subsequently agreeing to issue a statement stating the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) has helped to “dramatically reduce air pollution.”
However, a study from the Imperial College’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, published in 2021 found that the original ULEZ established in 2019 had only cut nitrogen dioxide by less than 3%.
Khan’s deputy for environment and energy, Shirley Rodrigues, told Professor Kelly she was “really disappointed” that the Imperial College had published findings questioning the effectiveness of ULEZ, in an email exchange.
The £800k fee by the mayor’s office to the college included a payment of almost £50k for a report on the “future health benefits of mayoral air quality policies”, which has not been peer reviewed.
The report has been cited by Khan throughout ULEZ press packets. These latest accusations of attempting to squash the ineffectiveness of the Zone come less than two weeks before the expansion of the ULEZ is due to be implemented.
by Bethany Vann | 31 Jul 23 | News, Sustainability, Topics
The Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) continues to call for a 12-month delay to the ULEZ expansion, which is set to be introduced at the end of next month.
The expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) throughout London has been ruled lawful by His Majesty’s High Court, following a challenge brought forward by the boroughs of Bexley, Harrow and Willingdon, and Surrey County Council.
The ULEZ is now set be expanded on 29 August 2023 to cover all 32 London boroughs, bringing approximately five million additional people into the zone.
John Newcomb, CEO of the BMF – a trade body representing merchants and suppliers in the UK and Ireland – says he is “disappointed” by the decision, which he says is “bad news for London’s building industry.” The trade body been calling for a 12-month delay, which it says would help to facilitate an increased transition period for those businesses reliant on motor vehicles that would affected by the ULEZ expansion.
The expansion could see a potential multi-level knock on effect across sectors, including the increase in trade service prices to cover the additional costs incurred from traveling through the ULEZ or the replacement of older vehicles impacted by the £12.50 charge.
Newcomb says: “We will continue to press for changes to the scheme to protect jobs and the local economy. In particular, we are campaigning for a targeted commercial vehicle scrappage scheme, and a 12-month delay before the expanded scheme goes live.
“BMF members recognise the importance of air quality and as responsible employers our members take a number of steps to ensure fuel efficiency and the health and wellbeing of staff.
“However, we firmly believe that a 12-month delay to the start of the ULEZ expansion will allow businesses and individuals to prepare – especially in relation to the availability of compliant vehicles.”
by The Pro Landscaper Team | 24 Mar 23 | News
Last week’s Budget saw the Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt unveiling plans to maintain the 5p cut in fuel duty for a further 12 months as inflation remains high – saving the average driver £100 next year. Whilst the freeze in fuel duty is a much-needed measure for tradespeople, Fix Radio, the UK’s only radio station dedicated to tradespeople, reveals a landmark study analysing other obstacles the industry is facing such as plans to increase the ULEZ to greater London and the ‘Transit Tax’.
News of the expansion to the ULEZ in London, which is due to be enforced from August 29th, has gathered pace from the construction industry with tradespeople looking to be amongst those worst hit. Research from the Federation of Master Builders has shown that increases to transportation costs, such as rising parking fees over the last 18 months has forced 80% of tradespeople in the Capital to increase their prices. Now, in new national research revealed by Fix Radio it has been shown that the ULEZ expansion will have a direct and detrimental impact on close to a quarter of all construction businesses in Greater London, with another 21% saying that increased transportation costs has made travelling into cities with their van an impossibility, increasing to 23% in London.
The business landscape for sole traders and small businesses in the construction sector is one that is facing increasing turbulence after the lockdown boom just a few years ago. Fix Radio found that one in four businesses were on the cusp of collapse in 2022, with new research from the station now finding that almost a quarter of tradespeople have had to increase their prices as a result of inflation but are ultimately losing work as a result.
Key stats:
- 21% of tradespeople say it is too expensive to use their van or vehicle for work due to the cost of driving into a major city, rising to 23% in London
- 23% of tradespeople say they have lost work from increasing their prices in the last year due to the cost-of-living crisis and increasing transport costs, rising to 25% in London
- 17% of tradespeople say the ULEZ expansion and the introduction of the ‘Transit Tax’ has had a detrimental impact on their business, rising to 23% in London
Adding to these business woes, from late August, new plans to increase ULEZ in Greater London has heightened fears about the impact this will have on tradespeople who face a £12.50 daily fee for vehicles not meeting minimum requirements – this could be equivalent to more than £3,100 a year. Already suffering the results of this, Fix Radio unveiled 23% of tradespeople in Greater London said the introduction of ULEZ and the ‘Transit Tax’ where taxpayers are facing higher rates on vans for private use – has already had a detrimental impact on their business.
To combat increasing costs for tradespeople as a result of the ULEZ expansion, a £110m scrappage scheme will be launched to help fund the purchase of new vehicles that are ULEZ-compliant. Under the new scrappage fund, each applicant is entitled to £2000 to help transition to a low-polluting or EV alternative. However, for tradespeople, this allocation covers a mere fraction of what would be required to swap their vehicle. With the EV equivalent of Britain’s best-selling van, the Ford Transit, starting at £48,000 for its most basic model, the provisions clearly do not go far enough. Even for those who could afford the significant outlay to purchase a new van, a report commissioned by Transport for London estimated that 30,000 non-compliant vans currently use the ULEZ expansion area every day, despite the fact there are only 23,803 vans that meet the new requirements for sale in the UK.
This concerning outlook comes on top of the fact that the cost of steep parking fee rises, and ‘green’ motoring charges forces builders, plumbers and electricians in London to spend £70 on average before they have even walked through the door, and a total of £140 a day including operating costs, according to Fix Radio research. With the average day rate of a tradesperson equalling £150 – according to Pier Consulting – the addition of the new ULEZ charges is now leaving tradespeople in London facing a loss of 21 workdays. For some tradespeople who have reported on Fix Radio that their daily costs have been as expensive as £300 to work in the Capital, the situation is much bleaker.
Whilst the situation for tradespeople travelling to jobs is grim across the UK, the picture in London is particularly severe. The impact of the ULEZ expansion stands to undermine the Mayor of London’s plea for tradespeople to work in the Capital to help improve the city’s housing stock. With the Mayor facing difficulties in matching his proposed targets for housebuilding, Sadiq Khan said in January of 2022, “Put simply, materials and labour are needed to build homes”. However, policies such as the expansion, coupled with minimal provisions to cover future overheads, seek to undermine the supposed importance of tradespeople, deterring them from traveling into London to work on essential housing projects.
Clive Holland, broadcaster on Fix Radio, said, “I have to say from a personal point of view I think through the pandemic our industry was asked to continue to build which we did. Without the construction industry, the UK economy would collapse – you’ve seen a lot of strikes recently but if tradespeople ever decided to strike it would cause significant issues throughout the UK. Tradespeople haven’t had the pat on the back that they deserve for helping through the pandemic and putting themselves in dangerous situations.
“When the ban on red diesel came, the ULEZ extension, the general taxation of vehicles and the electric vans requirement, they are all burdens to tradespeople which seriously affects their income. It is not only happening in London it’s happening in cities around the UK including Birmingham and Bath, the tradesperson who is going about their daily job I think is being victimised. Particular at this time with Brits battling inflation and recession it means that customers are turning down jobs because they can’t afford it and tradespeople are encountering extra fees, such as the ULEZ charge which makes jobs less desirable.”
