Reply to: We must build on the green belt to end this housing crisis

[BrilloPad]

One of the better funds is based out of Oxfordshire so London is not the only place that funds can successfully live. But to get to your point.

All the other cities that could be great suffer from the fact that they are geographically reliant on cars as the main source of transport. It's all well and good saying look you can get to Manchester from Leeds, but if you are then faced rammed train car parks with a tulipty bus at the end of it or a cab no-one is going to be interested. The one thing that London companies could do is to embrace more home based working that would then allow people anywhere in England to compete for jobs, doesn't need the sodding train lines and reduces traffic.

Main thing for hedge funds is reputation. Which is why most are based in Belgravia. It will be interesting to see if Blue Crest will now leave London as they no longer have external funds. I suspect they will be to attract top trader talent.

London is a nightmare for cars. People are cycling a lot more - and I think other cities would have an advantage.

Home based working is good. But I suspect jobs will quickly go offshore.

[Gumbo Robot]

I'm not sure you can even say it about St. Ives. More likely it is due to the very high holiday let prices. If you can get £1500pw and are happy with 5% ROI...

Is it though? It seems it must but it's seemed that way since before the banking crash.

But surely these holiday lets are second homes?

[LondonManc]

Which is why London is full of Investment banks, hedge funds, government and royalty?

People are attracted to it as it has "critical mass". Which is why HS2 must never be built - it will suck the intelligent people out of Birmingham. Only AtW will be left.

If you built a high speed rail link between Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. And sited parliament in the middle. Then London would die.

They're better off building a high speed rail link serving Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds. The commute between them in a car is shocking, then there's the parking at destination, which isn't a gimme. Leave Birmingham to forge proper local rapid links with Coventry and Nottingham on a west to east link like the one above. Combined with west coast and east coast high speed north to south links, you'd have a decent core rapid rail network.

[bobspud]

FTFY

Sadly true but if that means I can sod off and live in a warm place and commute in sandals all year round thats fine.

[sasguru]

The one thing that London companies could do is to embrace more home based working that would then allow people anywhere in in the world to compete for jobs, doesn't need the sodding train lines and reduces traffic.

FTFY

[bobspud]

Which is why London is full of Investment banks, hedge funds, government and royalty?

People are attracted to it as it has "critical mass". Which is why HS2 must never be built - it will suck the intelligent people out of Birmingham. Only AtW will be left.

If you built a high speed rail link between Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. And sited parliament in the middle. Then London would die.

One of the better funds is based out of Oxfordshire so London is not the only place that funds can successfully live. But to get to your point.

All the other cities that could be great suffer from the fact that they are geographically reliant on cars as the main source of transport. It's all well and good saying look you can get to Manchester from Leeds, but if you are then faced rammed train car parks with a tulipty bus at the end of it or a cab no-one is going to be interested. The one thing that London companies could do is to embrace more home based working that would then allow people anywhere in England to compete for jobs, doesn't need the sodding train lines and reduces traffic.

[darmstadt]

Do you ever think anything through?

We know you don't. You might want to read this through: researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN03012/SN03012.pdf

Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPOs) can be made by local authorities under their Housing Act powers e.g., acquisition of land or buildings for the provision of housing; clearance of unfit housing; or securing the aims of a housing renewal area. One potential use of CPOs is to acquire empty or under-occupied properties to bring them into housing use. Such CPOs should be considered on their merits as a last resort where owners have refused or failed to co-operate. Where the Secretary of State confirms such an Order, the acquiring Council would normally be expected to dispose of the properties acquired

Or even: Media releases | Local Government Association

Utilise it a bit more....

[DodgyAgent]

there you go, an answer for you: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compul...land_and_Wales

Do you ever think anything through?

[d000hg]

To use St Ives, the ONE place in the country where you can say with 100% confidence that high house prices are caused by second home ownership has to be verging on ludicrous?

I'm not sure you can even say it about St. Ives. More likely it is due to the very high holiday let prices. If you can get £1500pw and are happy with 5% ROI...

That bubble is about to pop, so we'll see if you're correct in terms of its knock on effects.

Is it though? It seems it must but it's seemed that way since before the banking crash.

[Chuck]

If you built a high speed rail link between Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. And sited parliament in the middle. Then London would die.

No it won't. It may be popular to say London is a tuliphole, and to a very large extent I agree, but London is a place that people from all over the world want to visit. People will leave their friends and families behind to live there.

Nobody wants to go to Birmingham or Manchester.

[BrilloPad]

4) London and its surrounding area will never die as a centre because people breed businesses that need people. that spend money that grow businesses... Living in the sticks I don't like it any more than anyone else but its just a fact of life.

Which is why London is full of Investment banks, hedge funds, government and royalty?

People are attracted to it as it has "critical mass". Which is why HS2 must never be built - it will suck the intelligent people out of Birmingham. Only AtW will be left.

If you built a high speed rail link between Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. And sited parliament in the middle. Then London would die.

[darmstadt]

And how exactly are "we" going to get our hands on them?

there you go, an answer for you: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compul...land_and_Wales

[bobspud]

1. Force the building companies to clean up waste areas of cities.
2. Have the Govt move the majority of it's departments to other areas of the country.21st century communication does exist.
3. Use tax breaks to get major companies to move HQ as2 above.
4. All of the above would relieve the pressure on the overcrowded SE & encourage growth elsewhere as long as the politicians/mandarins have some spine.

1) They already do clean up brown sites its just that when they are done they tend to put a clay cap over the land and then put a residents association in charge of the upkeep of that cap (and its liability) then suggest that the people that buy the homes don't plant anything that might grow roots more than a foot or so...

2) Having worked at a few out of the way government site in my time I can tell you that this most definitely does not end well. What happens is the local site brings extremely well paid jobs (70k + FFS) and then the useless ******* that are lucky enough to get those jobs, cling on to them like some form of possessed zombie rat on steroids as they know that if they are sacked there won't be another meal ticket for 100's of miles and that when the office politics begin. People actually start deliberately scuppering competing work so that they can look clever by saying Oooh look what x did... the results are quite terrifying.

3) Again you are asking a company to move its office from where every one wants to live to a place where most of the people that were there have fled. It makes for a crap gene pool of uncle brother cousins and your company being filled with people that can't move jobs because its the only decent paying job that they have.

4) London and its surrounding area will never die as a centre because people breed businesses that need people. that spend money that grow businesses... Living in the sticks I don't like it any more than anyone else but its just a fact of life.

[DodgyAgent]

How about using up some of these first: Homes From Empty Homes

And how exactly are "we" going to get our hands on them?

[darmstadt]

How about using up some of these first: Homes From Empty Homes

Government produces official statistics of “vacant dwellings” and the latest set shows over 200,000 long-term empty homes (empty for over six months) and over 600,000 total empty homes