RICS responds to the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget (27 October)

Jonathan Hale, Head of Government Affairs at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, responds to the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget (27 October).

“While the next phase of business rates relief is welcome, this seemingly endless tinkering underlines the need for a longer-term reform to support high streets and help restore them into the thriving commercial centres that communities want to be proud of. The devil will be in the detail and our surveyors will need clear, unambiguous guidance from government to help businesses to make the most of this new support.

“Chancellor Sunak didn’t mention the need to retrofit, rather than demolish, existing buildings – a key to unlocking Net Zero carbon emissions for construction in Britain – but the £3.9bn pledged to decarbonise homes and offices, which included support for low income homeowners to transition their heating, is a good start.

“The £5bn for cladding replacement – which we already knew was coming since February – will give more leaseholders greater peace of mind that their homes will be made safe but it’s still well short of the £15bn needed that is estimated to fix every building, but the additional funding to deliver a hundred and eighty thousand much needed affordable homes is welcome.”

Kindly shared by The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)