{"id":9495,"date":"2025-12-01T12:28:35","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T12:28:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/?p=9495"},"modified":"2025-12-01T12:28:35","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T12:28:35","slug":"monday-01-12-2025-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/daily-news\/monday-01-12-2025-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Monday: 01\/12\/2025 \/ News"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"blue-color\">\n<h6>Daily News: 01\/12\/2025<\/h6>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A report highlights rising pressure on London\u2019s electricity grid and the need to coordinate planning for both digital infrastructure and new homes. It warns that areas like West London face stretched capacity, with data centre growth likely to continue even as the housing crisis is at its worst. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.london.gov.uk\/sites\/default\/files\/2025-12\/Planning%20Regeneration%20Committee%20-%20Energy%20Infrastructure%20Report%20FINAL.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">London Gov.UK<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kingston Council will borrow \u00a363.1m to buy 150 homes, including former Right to Buy properties, aiming to reduce reliance on costly temporary accommodation and provide families with permanent housing. Pembrokeshire Council has spent \u00a33.5m acquiring 16 homes to boost local supply, while Hartlepool Council has approved the purchase of nine new Persimmon homes to expand its affordable housing stock. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mylondon.news\/news\/south-london-news\/kingston-council-borrow-63m-buy-32966005\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">MyLondon<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westerntelegraph.co.uk\/news\/25656181.3-5m-council-buys-16-pembrokeshire-homes-six-months\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Western Telegraph<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gazettelive.co.uk\/news\/teesside-news\/council-hartlepool-buy-houses-persimmon-32972056\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Teesside Live<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Data shows over 1,000 more empty homes in North East England in the past year-the smallest regional increase. Across England, long-term empty homes (vacant over six months) rose 14%, compared with 7% in the Northeast. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cjrj299x8y3o\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">BBC<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Basildon Council is set to consider a major overhaul of how it manages its council housing after agreeing to let a controversial maintenance contract lapse next year. The decision follows concerns raised at a cabinet meeting that contractor Morgan Sindall had not adequately performed its housing maintenance duties. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.echo-news.co.uk\/news\/25659181.basildon-council-consider-overhaul-manages-housing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Echo<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Families in a Surrey community where 35 Guildford Borough Council-owned homes have been left empty due to subsidence say they do not feel safe in their own homes. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c075kd5lep1o.amp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">BBC<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Birmingham\u2019s supported housing firm Midland Livings CIC has gone into liquidation, owing over \u00a312.2m, amid claims of threats, arson, and dishonesty, affecting around 1,000 vulnerable tenants and exposing issues in the \u2018exempt supported housing\u2019 sector. Meanwhile, graphene company Versarien has filed a notice to appoint an administrator, raising concerns over its future. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.birminghammail.co.uk\/news\/midlands-news\/birmingham-supported-housing-firm-breaking-32952515\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Birmingham Live<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.constructionenquirer.com\/2025\/12\/01\/future-of-construction-firm-files-administration-notice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Construction Enquirer<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UK housing construction activity in October 2025 saw an 8% decrease in project starts year-on-year, a 15% drop in main contract awards, and a 58% fall in detailed planning approvals compared to 2024, indicating a slowdown in residential project starts and planning approvals. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.constructionnews.co.uk\/cn-intelligence\/uk-construction-activity-october-2025-housing-28-11-2025\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Construction News (register)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Regional energy retrofit firms warn of a potential supply-chain collapse after the UK government moved to axe the \u00a36.5bn ECO4 scheme, which upgraded damp, mouldy, and draughty homes for low-income households. Meanwhile, wood-burning stoves could face a partial ban under Labour\u2019s updated environment plan, which sets out pollution targets and nature recovery projects to address environmental concerns linked to housebuilding. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.constructionenquirer.com\/2025\/12\/01\/eco4-axe-pushes-local-retrofit-firms-to-brink\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Construction Enquirer<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2025\/dec\/01\/wood-burning-stoves-to-face-partial-ban-in-labours-updated-environment-plan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Guardian<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Telford Homes and Poplar HARCA plan to revive a 3.7ha east London scheme with up to 580 homes, 675 shared-living units, and 650 student rooms. In Scotland, 333 homes are set for approval on the former AECC site. Over 270 objections have been raised against Bloor Homes\u2019 245-home plan in Fair Oak over traffic concerns. In Warrington, Habiko is consulting on 240 affordable one- and two-bedroom apartments at Academy Way. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.housingtoday.co.uk\/news\/telford-homes-and-poplar-harca-to-revive-stalled-east-london-regeneration-scheme\/5139563.article\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Housing Today (register)<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.scottishhousingnews.com\/articles\/333-homes-planned-for-former-aecc-site-set-for-approval\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scottish Housing News<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyecho.co.uk\/news\/25659151.270-objections-submitted-fair-oak-homes-plan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Daily Echo<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.placenorthwest.co.uk\/habikos-240-home-consultation-launched\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Place North West<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Daily News: 01\/12\/2025 A report highlights rising pressure on London\u2019s electricity grid and the need to coordinate planning for both digital infrastructure and new homes. It warns that areas like West London face stretched capacity, with data centre growth likely to continue even as the housing crisis is at its worst. London Gov.UK Kingston Council [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-daily-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9495"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9495\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9498,"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9495\/revisions\/9498"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.locarla.com\/insight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}