Reputation Management firm Chelgate have announced the restart of their podcast, āOpinion Battlegroundsā. The first two new episodes which focus on Crisis and Acute Issues Management, feature Chelgate Executive Chairman, Terence Fane-Saunders and Senior Advisor, Jonathan Ray. Recognised as one of the most distinguished leaders of the international public relations profession and a specialist in Reputation Protection and Issues Management, Terence Fane-Saunders has provided assistance to numerous high-profile clients around the world, including governments, business leaders, multinational organisations and distinguished individuals. Jonathan Ray also brings with him a wealth of high-level communications expertise spanning education, science, the environment and global […]
Read More..Chelgate Relaunch Opinion Battlegrounds Podcast
March 7th, 2024 by ChelgateAnalysis: Are our housing policies working for all?
March 23rd, 2022 by Michael HardwareLocal plans and housing policies are failing to provide homes for older people and the most vulnerable, writes Michael Hardware. The article was published in Placemaking Resource. No one would argue with the fact that there is a housing crisis in the UK, caused by decades of not building enough new homes. Although the government is trying hard to address this, are our housing policies really working? Are we providing all the housing our communities need through local plans and housing policies? The overheated housing market, with ever-growing property prices, certainly impacts heavily on younger people ā the […]
Read More..Government planning reforms U-turn
January 10th, 2022 by ChelgateConsultation to remain a key part of the planning process The Times today is reporting that the Government has changed its approach to reforming the planning system. The aim was to replace the existing planning process with a zonal system and mandatory housing targets. This would shift planning consent to the local plan stage with no need for applications to then come to planning committees. This would remove the opportunity for input from residents, reduce the role of local councillors in determining planning applications, and reduce consultation overall. The plans did provoke significant feedback from grass roots Conservatives […]
Read More..Transport Decarbonisation
July 14th, 2021 by Christopher MorrisToday saw the publication of two important transport strategies. The EU Commission presented their Fit for ’55 Package, and the UK Govt published their long-awaited Transport Decarbonisation Package. These strategies will overhaul the energy and transport regulatory environments in the EU and UK. Below you can find links to both these publications and our initial headline takeaways. EU Commission Fit for ’55 takeaways CBAM One of the most ambitious parts of the Fit for 55 proposal is the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). The Commission hopes this will prevent ‘carbon leakage’, where companies based in the […]
Read More..Latest Updates on the EU-UK Trade Talks
October 16th, 2020 by Careen BeckerChelgate Public Affairs has published the following briefing on news that No 10 sharpens no-deal rhetoric after gloomy European Council Summit conclusions on Brexit In a video statement given by the Prime Minister on post-Brexit trade deal talks, Boris Johnson said that the UK is prepared to walk away from the negotiations unless there is a āfundamental changeā in the European Unionās approach. If the European Union is not willing to offer the UK a Canada-style free trade agreement with zero tariffs and zero quotas, Boris Johnson said that the UK is prepared to āembrace the alternativeā […]
Read More..Tory backlash on radical reform
October 15th, 2020 by Michael HardwareOur Chelgate Local team has today published an article on plans by No 10 and MHCLG to bring root and branch reform of local government It would seem that plans by No 10 and MHCLG to bring root and branch reform of local government have quietly fallen into the very very long grass. Following a robust reaction from many councils and districts Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) used the COVID-19 announcements by the PM on Monday to quietly publish a ministerial position statement. This was then also covered in a letter to councillors ā which […]
Read More..Opinion: Can developer groups help enable better delivery
September 24th, 2020 by Michael HardwareThe following article written by Michael Hardware has been published in Placemaking Resource, part of Planning magazine. The article can be viewed on this link (registration required). By Michael Hardware, Chelgateās director of planning and property. He is also a serving county and district councillor. Several counties have seen the emergence of developer groups in recent years. These should not be confused with developer forums which tend to focus on individual plan areas. Developer groups cover a county, appealing to housebuilders, developers and their consultants which operate there. They also work in partnership with Local Enterprise Partnerships, county […]
Read More..Planning reform
August 7th, 2020 by Michael HardwareThe starting pistol on planning reform has been fired: the Government has today published a White Paper āPlanning for the Futureā for consultation. This coupled with the reform of local government potentially heralds a period of massive change for local government and developers in the coming years. The White Paper proposes to simplify the planning system, making it quicker, more democratic and leading to more homes being built; the target is 300,000 per annum, a million new homes during the life of the present government. Planning consultants will be pouring over the detail of the White Paper, reporting on […]
Read More..Restructuring of local government
August 6th, 2020 by Michael HardwareTown and county halls across the country are in a state of near panic as plans are brought forward by the Government for a major restructuring of local government. This would see the abolition of county, district, borough and some city councils to be replaced by unitary authorities and elected mayors. Although a commitment in the 2019 General Election manifesto, most thought it was unlikely these radical changes would be implemented, especially given the Covid 19 crisis. But Dominic Cummings has had other ideas. What is planned? This will be the biggest change in local government for decades, and […]
Read More..Housing need numbers halved in Essex
July 29th, 2020 by Michael HardwareInspectors have written to at least two authorities in Essex with unadopted local plans asking them to review their housing need numbers. This follows publication of the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2018 household projections. The figures, published on 29th June, predict the number of households in England to grow on average by 149,960 per year over the next 25 years. This is a lower rate of growth than anticipated by ONSās 2016 and 2014 publications. The Inspector examining Epping Forest District Councilās Local Plan wrote to the council on 16th July. In her letter she recommended that […]
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