The latest UK Government Hub at 7-8 Wellington Place in Leeds city centre is set to become home to 6,150 civil servants from a range of departments including HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and NHS Digital. The office is fitted with air distribution products supplied by Waterloo Air Products plc.

Lockdown may have recently ended, but a lot is happening under the covers, and innovators are coming up with great ideas to meet the Government’s net-zero goals. The Climate Change Committee’s ambition is to have 5.5 million heat pumps, recognise hydrogen and decarbonise heat. Here are a few tasters of exciting developments and thoughts.

Last month, the UK Government announced its plans to encourage the nation to “build, build, build” as part of its efforts to kick-start the UK economy post-coronavirus. While there is much to be admired in this sentiment, we must not lose sight of other important issues the construction and building product manufacturing sectors need to address, particularly around sustainability.

Following the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017, the negative spotlight on cladding materials had a major knock-on effect for the construction industry, from builders and sub-contractors to architecture firms. Days after the incident, cladding installed on buildings more than 18m in height was called into question by the Government, leading to significant increases in premiums for Professional Indemnity Insurance. Bryan Banbury, Managing Director of leading independent insurance broker Russell Scanlan, discusses the impact on the insurance industry and advises how companies can plan ahead when renewing policies.

In October, the British Board of Agrément, in conjunction with Local Authority Building Control, launched 100% Hackitt, a joint venture to press the Government to introduce all 53 of Dame Judith Hackitt’s recommendations. Claire Curtis-Thomas, Chief Executive of the BBA, discusses why the initiative is important and how the industry can get behind it.

With the end of the year nigh, many are relieved to see the back of 2018 – the renowned year of ‘uncertainty’, arduous negotiations and back and forth deal or no-deals. However, three months into the fresh, new year of 2019 lies ‘D-day’ for Brexit. Here, FC&A talks to two representatives from top law firm Womble Bond Dickinson about what they believe is on the horizon for the industry prior to and after March’s predicted events. Kathrine Eddon, Head of the Public Procurement Unit, and Michelle Essen, Managing Associate in Construction, take it from here...

2017 was a rollercoaster year for the construction industry and its workers. From Brexit, zero growth predictions and reports suggesting that the sector is struggling, to seemingly climbing out of a recession thanks to a surge in house-building, it’s fair to say we’ve had quite a year, says Steve Mansour, CEO of construction insurance specialist CRL.

Dr David Smoker, Business Development Director at ACO Water Management, examines how Brexit is set to impact on product standards in the construction sector.