Tag Archives: industry
Almost half of UK property owners have homes too big for their needs, research sugg
Across the UK, 47% of privately owned households are Tumbleweeders who occupy homes that are too large for their needs, according to new research. In its Housing Futures report, national estate agent Strutt & Parker defines a Tumbleweeder as those who have two or more bedrooms than required for the number of people living in their home and a couple is defined as needing one bedroom. The research shows that under-occupation becomes greater in the peripheral areas of the UK. The five most under-occupied areas in the UK are Rutland in the East Midlands where 63% of residents are Tumbleweeders, Eilean Siar in Scotland at 60%, Monmouthshire in Wales at 59%, The Cotswolds also at 59% and the Orkney Islands in Scotland at 58%. On the whole cities have lower under-occupation. The five least under-occupied areas in the UK are all in central London except Glasgow City where only 19% of residents are Tumbleweeders. City of London is the lowest at 13%, followed by Tower Hamlets at 17%, Westminster at 24% and Hackney at 25%. ‘Lack of supply is often cited as the biggest issue facing the housing industry in the UK. However, these figures clearly show that under-occupation is an equally huge issue,’ said Stephanie McMahon, head of research at Strutt & Parker. ‘The challenge for the industry is to provide suitable solutions to individuals' housing needs. In particular, we need to build more homes that our older generations are prepared to downsize into. As a nation of low supply and high demand, we would rather have all homes occupied efficiently where possible,’ she explained. ‘In reality, Tumbleweeders have the potential to be one of the greatest limiters of supply and, while being discussed in the social housing arena, their impact upon the wider housing market is not currently being addressed,’ she added. But she also pointed out that there are very valid reasons for being a Tumbleweeder, such as those who work in a city and spend weekends in another location may have homes for both. Likewise, empty nesters who have not downsized since their children left home, or indeed families who in the past have had ageing parents living with them may find they now have a house much larger than they really need. Tumbleweeders could also be those with part time families which are increasingly common in the modern age, for example parents whose children only stay with them at the weekends. According to research by Grainger, 41% of households will be occupied by one person by 2033, and three quarters will have no dependent children. Due to our ageing population, 3.8 million older people already live alone in the UK and 70% of these are women. Continue reading
RAK Airways suspends services
RAK Airways suspends services Abdul Basit / 1 January 2014 Airline is looking at new options to start operations again with big plans. RAK Airways has suspended operations for its restructuring process, and will be in the air again in a better way, according to the airline’s director of communications. “The airline suspended operations for re-growth and restructuring. We need to move forward and will use this time to re-evaluate and also see what are the best options for RAK Airways’ future,” Elizabeth Percy told Khaleej Times over the phone. “There are options for new investors and we are just looking at new options to start operations again with big plans,” she emphasised. The airline is likely to make another announcement next month regarding the future road-map, aviation sources said. Earlier in the day, the airline announced the suspension of all operations, until further notice, from January 1 (Wednesday). None of the passengers will be affected with the decision, as the airline did not book any flight for 2014, Percy said. On Tuesday the airline operated its last two flights — Doha and Peshawar — before suspending operations. “The decision for suspending operations was taken following increased pressures on the carrier’s performance due to continuous market conditions, increased operating costs and the impact of the regional political instability on the overall aviation industry,” the airline said in a statement. RAK Airways, which re-launched in 2010 with a new livery and under new management, was operating flights from RAK International Airport to Doha, Peshawar, Islamabad, Lahore, Jeddah, Riyadh, Calicut and Kathmandu. ‘‘The board of directors took the decision today to suspend the operations until further notice. We believe this decision is in the best interest of the airline and its shareholders. We will take this time to re-evaluate the best options available for RAK Airways’ future as well as those that fit the industry requirements of the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah,” the statement said. Percy, who is also director of corporate communications for the RAK Department of Civil Aviation and RAK Airport, said that the airport operations will continue as usual for cargo, charter and other services. Responding to a question, she said that the affected employees of the airline would be compensated under the UAE Labour Law. In October, 2013 RAK Airways celebrated its third anniversary. — abdulbasit@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
Food vs. Fuel in 2013
Food vs. Fuel in 2013 By MATTHEW L. WALD Workers harvesting sugar cane in Sertãozinho, Brazil, for use in ethanol production.Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesWorkers harvesting sugar cane in Sertãozinho, Brazil, for use in ethanol production. In coming days, the Environmental Protection Agency’s to-do list will include setting a standard for the amount of advanced biofuels that refiners will be required to blend into gasoline and diesel supplies in 2013. The question is tricky because production in one category, cellulosic fuel from nonfood sources like corn cobs, stalks, wood chips and garbage, has not met the target set by Congress. The E.P.A. has the authority to adjust the quotas as needed, but the issue is complicated. The quotas were laid out in 2007 when Congress established a renewable fuel standard. Under its targets, production of cellulosic fuel was supposed to hit one billion gallons next year, up from 500 million in 2012, 250 million in 2011 and 100 million in 2010. But so far output is near zero because no one seems to have hit on a commercially successful recipe. So far the E.P.A. has had little choice but to repeatedly waive nearly all of the cellulosic requirement, but this has led to bitter complaints from the refiners, who say they are still required to use small quantities of a fuel that does not exist or face fines. Even as the agency waived most of the cellulosic requirement, it kept intact a larger 2.75 billion-gallon quota for “advanced” biofuels in general, which includes cellulosic, ethanol made from Brazilian sugar cane and biodiesel made mostly from soybeans. Production of biodiesel or sugar-cane ethanol is favored because each process emits relatively little carbon dioxide, the predominant greenhouse gas, meaning it has an advantage on the global warming front. Keeping the quota for advanced fuels intact was more or less O.K. when the agency waived smaller cellulosic mandates, said Jeremy I. Martin, a senior scientist in the Union of Concerned Scientists’ clean vehicles program. But it’s going to be a problem if the agency waives a one billion gallon requirement for 2013, he warned. If the overall 2.75 billion quota for advanced fuels is not reduced, the biodiesel and the sugar-cane ethanol will have to make up the difference. And if that happens, Mr. Martin argues, the quota will start putting more pressure on food supplies. Various other industrial users of food, especially companies that raise chickens, turkeys, hogs and beef, have meanwhile been trying to get the mandate for corn ethanol reduced, but the E.P.A. has declined to do so. The biofuel industry has been pushing hard to maintain the quotas, with waivers for cellulosic fuels as needed, year by year. A new industry report catalogs a growing number of efforts to produce cellulosic biofuels, albeit commercially unsuccessful ones. “All in all, the post-election environment in Washington seems to promise continuation of stable policy support for advanced biofuels commercialization and the robust growth of the industry,” Brent Erickson, executive vice president of the Biotechnology industry Organization said in a letter to supporters this month. Mr. Martin’s theory is that E.P.A. should stay the course. “We’re going to have to accept that the cellulosic fuels are late,’’ he said, but it would be better to delay the quotas than to eliminate them. “Going in the right direction a little more slowly is better than going in the wrong direction,’’ he said. Continue reading
