He has now named his Shadow Cabinet where, in Housing, the long-time Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, John Healey, was moved to Defence Secretary with Bristol MP Thangam Debbonaire becoming the new Shadow Housing Secretary.

TFA takes a look at what a Starmer government could look like for house building and planning.

Councils building again at scale –legislation to make it easier and cheaper for councils and development corporations to buy land for development.

Register of landlords and controls on rents – building 100,000 homes a year for social rent.

Estate regeneration schemes – new rules so that there would be no net reduction in the supply of social rented homes, and that estate residents should be balloted when their homes face demolition.

Ending of Right to Buy.

Affordable Housing – Starmer believes “a good rule of thumb” is that affordable should be based on households not spending more than 30% of net income on housing costs.

Green Belt – priority would be for new development on brownfield sites, but communities would have flexibility on the Green Belt “where there’s a clear need and local support for adjusting current Green Belt boundaries.”

Permitted development rights – would reverse these ending “a free-for-all which lets unscrupulous property developers to profit and deprives areas of employment spaces.”

Affordable Housing Contributions – removal of “loopholes” like the extension of permitted development rights and a more transparent process where councils “drive a hard bargain for their communities.”

Devolution – would like greater devolution and believes there’s is a strong case for devolution on housing given housing markets differ so much across the country.

Shadow Cabinet in full:

Keir Starmer, Leader of the Opposition

Angela Rayner, Deputy Leader and Chair of the Labour Party

Anneliese Dodds, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer

Lisa Nandy, Shadow Foreign Secretary

Nick Thomas-Symonds, Shadow Home Secretary

Rachel Reeves, Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

David Lammy, Shadow Justice Secretary

John Healey, Shadow Defence Secretary

Ed Miliband, Shadow Business, Energy and Industrial Secretary

Emily Thornberry, Shadow International Trade Secretary

Jonathan Reynolds, Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary

Jonathan Ashworth, Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Rebecca Long-Bailey, Shadow Education Secretary

Jo Stevens, Shadow Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Bridget Philipson, Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury

Luke Pollard, Shadow Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary

Steve Reed, Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary

Thangam Debbonaire, Shadow Housing Secretary

Jim McMahon, Shadow Transport Secretary

Preet Kaur Gill, Shadow International Development Secretary

Louise Haigh, Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary (interim)

Ian Murray, Shadow Scotland Secretary

Nia Griffith, Shadow Wales Secretary

Marsha de Cordova, Shadow Women and Equalities Secretary

Andy McDonald, Shadow Employment Rights and Protections Secretary

Rosena Allin-Khan, Shadow Minister for Mental Health

Cat Smith, Shadow Minister for Young People and Voter Engagement

Charles Falconer, Shadow Attorney General

Valerie Vaz, Shadow Leader of the House

Nick Brown, Opposition Chief Whip

Angela Smith, Shadow Leader of the Lords

Tommy McAvoy, Lords’ Opposition Chief Whip

The post Labour’s new vision for house building appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

Traditionally, the industry has used methods to inform the public and gather their views face to face at exhibitions and workshops, as well as through a range of newspaper adverts, press releases, leaflets and posters. To gather views, a questionnaire or feedback form would be handed to them to complete at an event or taken away and posted using a freepost envelope or included on a website.

Within project teams, discussion is often centred around long email threads with differing subject lines and those relevant to the discussion cc’d, or through phone calls or face-to-face meetings.

With so many of the traditional methods now restricted by Government, there is a chance for industry to embrace technology to allow it to continue to hit targets, albeit remotely, in a challenging environment.

Website

A website for any proposed development was already a useful tool but a good one is an even bigger asset in the current climate. A well thought out website will be able to inform and interact with your audience, using Google sheets or other such tools to produce feedback forms for visitors.

Facebook

Despite the advancement of Facebook targeting being credited by some for the recent EU Referendum and US election results, it is still underused by businesses hoping to reach specific audiences. Facebook’s targeting options are an excellent opportunity to target groups that would not otherwise participate in the public consultations that use more traditional methods. Often these people are also more supportive of increased housing in their area.

Zoom

Zoom seems to have become the star of the coronavirus crisis. For the development industry, it is able to fulfil a dual purpose.

Firstly, it can be used to engage with residents in meetings of anywhere up to 100 attendees. Residents do not need to have a zoom account to participate, a link can be distributed to the relevant respondents through a mailing list or on the development site’s website.

Zoom allows the person at the helm to control the meeting or even muting participants similar to how a Chair would during a town hall meeting which keeps the discussion on track, something that other Q&A platforms, such as Facebook Live, could be in danger of falling to.

Zoom is also a good option to use for those offices where employees are working from home currently but also in the future. It is available on a wide range of operating systems and services include reliable streaming for team meetings, screen sharing for presentations as well as annotation and whiteboards for meetings where some level of collaboration is required.

Slack

Slack is an online messaging platform that you can use on Windows, Mac OS, Android, and iOS and synchronises your devices if you have more than one e.g. a phone and laptop.

There are two types of channels on Slack: the public and private. Public are discussions that all team members can access and participate in and a private channel will only be accessible to team members specified by the channel’s creator. The use of ‘teams’ stops the need to CC and BCC people into emails. Busy project managers may want to take advantage of the custom notification settings to only send an alert when a keyword is mentioned, or to do it only if sent a private message.

In addition to messaging, the system can be used with a lot of third-party service integrations to enhance file uploads from Google Drive for example.

Skype and Microsoft Teams

Skype is probably the biggest name in the video call field currently but Skype for Business Online will retire on July 31, 2021, and be integrated with Microsoft Teams, bringing together files, chats, and apps under an integrated app.

The communication service allows users to make free video calls to other Skype accounts and with Microsoft’s recent changes it allows group chats with guests.

The new integrated service will have messaging services and allow you to hold video chats and make local, domestic, and international calls. White-board options are available for collaborative meetings and you are able to post polls and hold Q&A sessions.

In these challenging times, with the help of technology, TFA considers that the wheels of the planning process can continue to turn and that those who work to ensure they promote the most effective engagement campaign are more likely to win the favour of communities and their elected representatives.

The post How technology can help engagement appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

These times present many challenges to the sector, including how we ensure enough homes are delivered to keep the industry moving and to address the housing crisis that the country has faced for many years.

TFA is conducting a survey of clients in respect of the current crisis, establishing the issues most likely affecting their business and to understand how best to pragmatically address them. We will encapsulate this into a briefing to key contacts in Government both at a ministerial and backbench level as well as with officials.

Whilst delay to decision making is likely at the moment, with many local authorities already cancelling or postponing planning committee meetings, developers are still often contractually obliged to meet deadlines for application submissions and are targeted to achieve results to keep their organisations building homes or selling land.

As the Government works with authorities to ensure decision making effectively takes place, particularly where delegated decisions may not be considered appropriate, TFA continues to engage with decision makers promoting the interests of our clients.

Going digital

Pre-application consultation has often included public meetings and gatherings of large numbers of people including workshops, exhibitions, community groups, drop-in events. All are inappropriate and against Government advice.

The solution is undeniably to better harness technology to enable effective engagement to take place. Project websites can become more interactive, Facebook adverts and even Facebook ‘live’ Q&A sessions can create positive debate wrapped up by online questionnaires.

With towns, parishes, stakeholder groups and members the use of tools such as Google Hangouts, Skype and Microsoft Teams will enable large enough groups to convene via video calls where presentations can also be made and discussed. These may also become the way which planning authority and town and parish meetings can continue to take place.

These tools better enable engagement with a wider demography, given that the number of people not online is now quite limited, and these newer technologies allow us to target groups which are often unrepresented during traditional public consultation.

Keeping with the traditional

Of course, some people will not be able to use or access technology and may struggle to use these tools in order to engage in the process.

To mitigate this, leaflets or feedback postcards and hotlines will still be important to enable all to engage in the debate about shaping development in their local areas.

TFA use resourceful printers who, following all guidance and advice issue by HM Government, now use an antimicrobial sealant that kills harmful microorganisms that help to spread bacteria and viruses.

Working with communities

Many authorities have a Statement of Community Involvement that advise how they advocate the industry engages with residents. These are of course a guide and not-adhering to these guidelines cannot in itself create a reason for refusal, although members in local planning authorities do consider that undertaking robust consultation is essential.

In these challenging times, TFA considers that the wheels of the planning process can continue to turn and that those who work to ensure they promote the most effective engagement campaign are more likely to win the favour of communities and their elected representatives.

The post Engaging throughout the Coronavirus Crisis appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

The Budget was impressive in its content and delivery with Rishi Sunak showing considerable political skill in offering a positive vision for the Country at a time of anxiety and uncertainty due to the Coronavirus.

Dowload your copy here

The post The Budget and “Planning for the Future” appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

Devolution and Infrastructure Investment

Keen to secure the votes gained in the ‘Red Wall,’ the Government has committed to devolving further powers to the regions.

37% of residents in England and almost 50% in the North are already served by city region mayors with powers and money to prioritise local issues, including funding significant infrastructure projects, but smaller cities, towns and counties will now also be looked at as part of the New English Devolution White Paper.

The success of the Conservatives in the North in particular has meant that newly-elected Tory MPs in the north of England “have been given a hotline to a cabinet minister to help them deliver local spending projects for their constituents” as reported in the Daily Telegraph. Indeed, Jake Berry, the minister for the Northern Powerhouse, is charged with compiling requests for investment into infrastructure projects from northern Conservative MPs and tracking their delivery.

He is “already fielding requests for a relief road and local station capacity in Leigh, Greater Manchester, while a request has come to consider HS2 connectivity in Warrington, Cheshire”, the Telegraph adds.

A new £10 billion Single Housing Infrastructure Fund has also been announced and will provide funding for roads, schools and doctors surgeries to support the expansion of communities.

Planning reforms and the Green Belt

Conversely, a demographic the Conservative Party performed poorly with was the young.  In fact, data compiled by YouGov shows that if only 18-24 year olds were allowed to vote in the recent General Election then Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Party would have won 544 out of 650 seats.

Amongst the Conservative Party’s traditional base, the Green Belt is held in almost mythical status but, at some point, the Conservative Party will need to reach younger voters. A generation unable to afford their own home will make reaching a younger audience next to impossible to do.

Ministers want to make “building on Green Belt areas where there are already developments, such as around railway stations” easier to do. They also would like to introduce rebates where “applicants will get their fees repaid in full if local authorities don’t meet tight deadlines”.

Another reform would be scrapping “a regulation that forces builders to apply for permission if they want to demolish a commercial property and replace it with homes.”

Other announcements include:

Price reduction for ‘key workers’ and local first-time buyers – local councils will be able to use housing developers’ contributions to discount homes by 30% for people who cannot otherwise afford to buy in their area.

Simplifying Shared Ownership – The Conservative Party manifesto committed to investigating how shared ownership can be simplified. The Government confirmed it will introduce a reformed model that will be more transparent, enabling buyers to progress to full ownership.

Banning of Leaseholds – New legislation will be introduced to ban new houses being sold on a leasehold basis and reducing ground rents for new leases to zero.

The post Potential Planning Reforms in 2020 appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

As Sir John Curtice said, with the chances of a Labour-majority as close to zero as to effectively be zero, the binary choice at this election is between a majority Conservative Government or a coalition Government.

With the manifestos of the three main national parties now released, TFA takes a quick look at what they have said on Housing so far.

Conservative Party

The Prime Minister again complained about the practise of “land banking” by the big eight house builders and said that a Conservative majority Government would tackle these challenges and encourage more small developers to become involved in housebuilding.

The Prime Minister committed to building 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s, extending the Help to Buy scheme from 2021 to 2023 and reviewing new ways to support home ownership following its completion.

The Manifesto, launched yesterday, promised to protect and enhance the Green Belt and continue to prioritise brownfield development for the regeneration of cities and towns.

As part of this commitment, the Conservative Party pledged to ask every community to decide on its own design standards for new development and said it will support environmentally friendly homes and will expect new streets to be lined with trees. This, they said, would support innovative housing design to make housing more affordable, accessible, and suitable for disabled people and an ageing population.

Other notable announcements included:

• A commitment to implement and legislate for all reviews laid out in the Hackitt Review
• Amending planning rules so that the infrastructure – roads, schools, GP surgeries – comes before people move into new homes. This will be done through a £10 billion Single Housing Infrastructure Fund
• A promise to bring forward a Social Housing White Paper which will set out further measures to empower tenants and support the continued supply of social homes
• A promise to make the planning system simpler for the public and small builders

Labour Party

The Labour Party released their manifesto with the standout housing announcement being the creation of a new Department for Housing, should they be able to form a majority Government.

The Party said that brownfield sites would be a priority for development in order to protect the Green Belt. This, they said, would provide an opportunity to deliver at least one million homes over the next decade, with a commitment to build at least 150,000 council and social homes a year, with 100,000 of these built by councils for social rent. As part of this election promise, local people would also be given priority on new homes built in their area.

Other notable announcements included:

• Making Homes England a more accountable national housing agency

• Giving councils more powers with housing, including new duty on councils to plan and build homes, with the funding coming from national government

• A ‘use it or lose it’ tax would be introduced to limit the number of housing developments that stall

• Affordable housing would be linked to local incomes
• A review on the planning guidance for developments in flood risk areas
• The creation of a new English Sovereign Land Trust, which can buy land cheaply to allow for more low-cost housing
• An end to the conversion of office blocks to homes through ‘permitted development’ means

Liberal Democrat

The Liberal Democrats also launched their General Election Manifesto, unsurprisingly with Brexit at its heart.

They did, however, pledge to build 300,000 homes per year in order to meet current demand, with 100,000 homes for social rent each year paid for with £130billion from the Capital Infrastructure Fund.

Upon forming a majority Government, the Liberal Democrat’s would also declare an emergency ten-year programme to reduce energy consumption from all the UK’s buildings which they say will cut both emissions and fuel bills. As part of this initiative, planning regulations would require all new homes and non-domestic buildings to be built to a zero-carbon standard by 2021.

Other notable announcements included:

• Reforming planning to ensure developers are required to provide essential local infrastructure from affordable homes to schools, surgeries and roads alongside new homes
• Reform the planning systems to reduce the need to travel and promote cycling and walking
• Amend planning rules to promote sustainable transport and land use

The post 2019 General Election Briefing appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

The elections on Thursday, 2 May, were always going to be important to all political parties as it is the year when the largest number of “all-out” elections take place as every councillor has to face being re-elected. Also there are numerous contests in councils where a third of all councillors are up for re-election.

In a veritable “mini” General Election millions of voters will have an opportunity to cast their votes.

The last time these seats were contested was in 2015, on the day that David Cameron rode into 10 Downing Street as Prime Minister with an overall majority. The turnout in local elections were therefore unusually high, with averages of 78% in the rural areas.

As there was such a swing to Conservatives in the General Election, this was reflected in voting patterns in the local elections so Conservatives won seats they would never have dreamed of taking. The year of 2015 was therefore a high watermark for them.

How things have changed, not just since 2015 but from two years ago. On Thursday, 4 May 2017 the Conservatives had their best showing in local government elections for 40 years. On that day Conservative Tim Bowles became the first Mayor of the West of England by 4,377 votes and fellow Tory Andy Street became the Mayor of the West Midlands by 3,766 votes, no mean feat in an electorate where at that time 21 of the West Midlands parliamentary seats were held by Labour.

Political parties were agreed at the time that “The Theresa May effect” influenced the voting, especially in the knife-edge successful Tory conquests in the Tees Valley, West Midlands and the West of England.

Governments always expect local elections to be used as a barometer of the public feeling’s on how they have performed.

So, Conservatives are feeling more than uncomfortable on a number of issues. The handling of Brexit may not have been in the headlines in the last couple of weeks, but it still comes up on the doorsteps. Along with this comes “The Theresa May effect” which is now seen as a negative with Conservative constituency chairmen wanting her to go soon. Some party members are talking about spoiling their ballot papers and refusing to campaign.

Conservatives nationally are pointing to the fact that Conservative councils are better value for money as council tax is higher in Labour controlled councils. So, whilst historically Government parties complain that people vote on national issues in local elections, these elections are prominently featuring local issues. The big local issue is planning, very often an unpopular draft Local Plan where objectors have formed themselves into action groups to take on the traditional political parties.

A case in point is on the Prime Minister’s home turf of Maidenhead, which is part of The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, where an unpopular draft Local Plan has been considered by an inspector and sent back to the council to review.

After contentious committee and council meetings, some Conservative Party councillors resigned the whip, sat as independents and then formed themselves into The Borough First Party, which is highly critical of the draft Local Plan and the running of the council generally. This new group is fielding 19 candidates and has allies in other wards.

The Conservatives currently have a large majority and gained control from the Liberal Democrats in 2007, who had two spells of running the council and for a number of years it was a no overall control authority. The council membership will be reduced from 57 to 41 on 2 May and this year’s contests are being fought on new boundaries so this is an added political dimension.

It is a similar situation in Guildford, where the Conservatives hold 31 of the 48 council seats. In 2015 the Guildford Greenbelt Group contested a handful of seats and they have three of the current seats. A new group, “Residents for Guildford and Villages” was formed in January 2019 with the aim of encouraging more residents to support or stand as Independents. “Residents for Guildford and Villages,” who complain that “the council’s strategy has been to prioritise huge development around the villages in the Green Belt,” are fielding 17 candidates and Guildford Greenbelt Group have six candidates in most of the 22 wards.

In neighbouring Mole Valley, the political tallies are even closer with 21 Conservatives, 14 Liberal Democrats and six Independents, giving the Conservatives an overall majority of one. But, even before election day, the Tories have lost a seat as they failed to put up a candidate in Bookham North. The Greens are making a challenge too.

Objections to the draft Local Plan in Tonbridge and Malling has prompted the Greens to field 10 candidates and they are campaigning particularly about the council selling off public green space.

The Greens and Liberal Democrats are making concerted efforts in Solihull, where even in the “Mayfair of the Midlands,” Conservatives are expecting losses, largely because of Brexit. Under the draft Local Plan some Green Belt land will be lost in an authority where 66% of the land is Green Belt.

Over in South Oxfordshire, the draft Local Plan now with Mr Brokenshire’s department, has not only been unpopular with residents but also with some Conservative councillors, who voted against it going out to public consultation last December and were suspended from the party. Most of these members are now not standing again. The Liberal Democrats have done a deal with the Greens on not standing against each other.

In other areas established political parties who had previously controlled the local authority are making determined bids, often complaining about a lack of infrastructure accompanying new housing. An example of this in the Vale of White Horse where the Liberal Democrats are aiming to regain seats in Abingdon, Grove and Wantage.

Likewise, in Bath and North-East Somerset, the Liberal Democrats, buoyed by two by-elections wins from the Conservatives and the regaining of the Bath parliamentary seat in 2017, are pushing to take further political scalps.

Boundary changes in South Gloucestershire, where the number of councillors is being reduced from 70 to 61, may have an impact on the result, although the Conservatives are expected to retain control.

With a likely swing away from the Conservatives, Swindon (with Conservatives having a majority of just one is likely to go to no overall control) and Milton Keynes is expected to remain without a majority party.

The parties are agreed on three things – there will be a reduced turnout and with the public having little time for politicians, apathy will reign, and this could help the minor parties. Further, it could be a long wait for the results. With a shortage of council election staff and some councils’ budgets hard pressed, the counting of votes for the districts and unitary authorities will not begin until 9 am on Friday with some town and village contests being counted on Saturday.

Elections were due this year in the four districts within Buckinghamshire, but these were cancelled as Buckinghamshire will have an all-purpose county authority next year.

In all, some 8,425 seats in 248 local authorities across England are being contested. When they were last fought the Conservatives took 4,906 and took control of 140 local authorities.

The post Local Elections 2019 Preview appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

Under the new rules, developers would be mandated to deliver a ‘biodiversity net gain’ when building new housing or commercial developments – meaning habitats for wildlife would have to be enhanced and left in a measurably better state than they were pre-development.

Developers would need to demonstrate how they are improving biodiversity – such as through the creation of green corridors, planting more trees, or forming local nature spaces. Green improvements on-site would be encouraged, but where they are not possible, the consultation proposes to charge developers a levy to pay for habitat creation or improvement elsewhere.

Some developers already follow the biodiversity net gain approach voluntarily, but the Government claims that the proposed standardised, mandatory approach would give them clarity and certainty on how to improve the environment through development, while also considering whether any sites, such as small and brownfield sites, should be exempt from the rules.

The Government now aims to work collaboratively with developers, statutory authorities, tourism services, energy providers and waste specialists “to better understand how profitable development can be a driving force of environmental improvement.”

The consultation follows the National Planning Policy Framework in July 2018 which outlined stronger protections for the environment. The Government hopes that the consultation will help them to fulfil its aim to use and manage land sustainably, as outlined in the 25 Year Environment Plan.

The consultation will run to the 10^th February, 2019, and you are able to contribute to the consultation here.

How TFA can help?

TFA is a specialist in leading communications campaigns; developing engagement strategies; and providing strategic advice and counsel. We design political and policy engagement programmes with key decision makers and influencers to develop a network of supportive political, industry and stakeholder “advocates” to further our clients’ interests.

TFA was previously successful in engaging with Government regarding the NPPF. Our effective engagement strategy led to Government taking forward our recommendations and MHCLG publishing a technical consultation on updates to national planning policy and guidance in line with our recommendations. Full details of the case study can be seen here.

The post The Government’s ‘Net Gain’ consultation appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) has collected almost £1 billion from developers since it was introduced in 2010, in addition to the £5 billion local councils have secured from developers towards affordable housing and infrastructure through Section 106 planning obligations. 227 (67%) English planning authorities are currently charging or progressing towards charging Community Infrastructure Levy.

The proposed changes, initially announced at the 2018 Autumn Budget, attempt to ensure that the infrastructure needs of communities are identified from the outset and allow developers to understand their obligations, identify the cost and impact on a proposal, and to ensure that a viable scheme is presented. It also seeks to increase the types of project that can benefit from CIL, ensuring a wider-range of community priorities are eligible to receive funding.

The public consultation will seek views on:

• Introduction of a new strategic infrastructure tariff – this levy will help fund large-scale projects and benefit multiple communities falling under a combined local authority.
• Widening options on how contributions can be used by councils to benefit their residents.
• Increasing certainty and transparency – new rules will require councils to publish details on what has been collected and spent, so communities understand the benefit of development.
• Ensuring the Community Infrastructure Levy responds to changes in land values.

The consultation will close  on 31 January 2019.

How can TFA help?

Our team can assist you in taking part in this important Government review Community Infrastructure Levy. We can assist in shaping coherent policy positions, engaging with key stakeholders in the process to inform the future direction of the Government’s policies to address the housing crisis.

The post Developer contributions reform: technical consultation appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.

Michael Barlow, Partner, Burges Salmon

Michael, Partner and specialist in environmental law at Burges Salmon, opened the event. He detailed the firm’s commitment to sustainability, both in the operations of the business – i.e. cutting down waste – as well as pro-bono consulting for environmental charities and action groups. He also highlighted the importance of the SDGs as a new way for businesses to challenge and focus their impact.

Burges Salmon have focused on goals that they believe can make a difference locally, such as through their social mobility work with schools, or through sharing their expertise in environmental law. He concluded that Burges Salmon, and business more generally, have an important role to play in influencing the change needed to meet the SDGs – the goals provide a welcome opportunity for further collaboration and partnership.

Ian Townsend, Chief Executive, Bristol Green Capital Partnership CIC

Bristol Green Capital Partnership (BGCP) is a unique network of organisations that have pledged to work towards a sustainable city with a high quality of life for all. Chief Executive Ian Townsend spoke about how the partnership supports 850 members to achieve a sustainable city, essentially BGCP connect and amplify their members’ sustainability efforts.

The key focus for BCGP in 2019 will be on environmental equity and building a circular economy in the city. Ian argued that the SDGs cannot be achieved without cities contributing to them. There needs to be a shared language around sustainability that all stakeholders – politicians, businesses and civil society – can use. Much of this work is currently being carried out by the Bristol SDG Alliance, which brings together a range of organisations and individuals to raise awareness of the SDGs and its use as a framework for the city’s future sustainable and resilient development. Ultimately, Ian said, there needs to be effective cross-sector collaboration in order to achieve these goals and build a sustainable Bristol.

Jaya Chakrabarti, Vice-President, Business West – The Initiative

Jaya was next to speak in her capacity as Vice President of the Initiative – a leadership team within Business West which enables the business community to positively influence the way the area is shaped, managed and developed. The Initiative works with Local, Regional and National Government, the West of England LEP, the third sector with the collective goal to create an economically and culturally prosperous region, devoid of inequality and poverty.

She praised Bristol’s track record when it came to positive collaboration between business and other regional stakeholders – for example with the successful campaign to bring in a directly-elected mayor in 2012, to the ambitious anti-slavery partnership known as the TISC Report – a collective mission to tackle modern slavery with corporate and third sector partners. She argued that business can really make a difference if it works in partnership with stakeholders and emphasised that that the Initiative and Business West was a powerful network for sharing good business practice and improving the city.

Steve Kenzie, Executive Director, UN Global Compact Network UK

Steve introduced the UN Global Compact as the largest responsible business network driving forward sustainable growth. It is a non-binding United Nations pact to encourage businesses worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their implementation.

The organisation undertook some research on the general levels of awareness of the SDGs in different countries. They found that the UK had the worst level of awareness in Europe with only 14% of respondents saying they had heard of the SDGs, this is compared with 73% in Finland. Steve emphasised the need for a greater awareness in the business sector, if we are to make the SDGs a reality.

He gave a brief history of the development and ideas behind the SDGs. These were conceptualised at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro in 2012. The objective was to produce a set of universal goals that meet the urgent environmental, political and economic challenges facing our world. The SDGs replaced the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which started a global effort in 2000 to tackle the indignity of poverty.

The SDGs are a bold commitment to build upon the MDGs, and tackle some of the more pressing challenges facing the world today. It consists of 17 Goals which are all interconnected, meaning success in one will have an impact on success for others. For example: dealing with the threat of climate change impacts how we manage our natural resources, achieving gender equality or better health helps eradicate poverty, and fostering peace and inclusive societies will reduce inequalities and help economies prosper. More information on the SDGs can be found here.

Steve finished by arguing that alignment with the SDGs could be good for businesses: helping to improve corporate reputation; opening up new business opportunities; and helping to attract the best and brightest staff, who often care about working for a company with the right ethical framework.

Laura Callaghan-Pace, Engagement Lead – SDGs Team, Department for International Development

Laura detailed the work that the Department for International Development is undertaking in accordance with SDG obligations. Next July the UK will present a voluntary national review (VNR). The VNR will highlight the UK’s contributions to delivering all 17 SDGs. Around 100 countries have already completed and presented their own VNRs.

The UK’s VNR will consist of 17 chapters, one relating to each SDG. The team uses data provided by the ONS and will work with Government departments to highlight the country’s progress towards each goal. This will be a cross-Whitehall process which reflects Government work, as well as the activities of civil society, businesses and local communities. Any stakeholder has the opportunity to contribute to the VNR by submitting evidence here – Government are actively seeking case studies from a variety of businesses on how they have aligned with the SDGs.

Catherine Rushforth, Head of UK Responsibility & Sustainability Policy & UK Foundation Representative, Airbus

The final speaker, Catherine Rushford, spoke about how Airbus has put alignment with the SDGs at the heart of the company. Airbus has 130,000 employees over 180 sites in 35 countries. It has been committed to the UN’s SDGs since 2003. Airbus believe that sustainability drives responsibility and innovation, and it has helped that Airbus CEO Tom Enders is very engaged in the sustainability agenda.

When looking at societal trends, Airbus found that there is increasing divestment in businesses and sectors based upon poor ethical or sustainability standards. A maturity in civil society has driven much of this agenda. Airbus is looking to manage both its footprint -. the externalities that the company has on the environment through, for example, its supply chain – as well as its handprint – positive impacts such as connecting people and supporting communities. The combination of both the handprint and footprint forms the basis of Airbus’ Responsibility and Sustainability Charter, which sets out how all employees should approach their work and business. Airbus have aligned this Charter with the SDGs which allows the company to clearly demonstrate impact that the organisation has on society, while also enabling them to have better discussions with policy makers.

Catherine concluded by saying that business alignment with the SDGs should try to move away from motivational “pictures on the wall”, to concrete action. She encouraged all businesses to sign up and act, emphasising that innovation and sustainability are inherently linked.

The post UN Global Compact Sustainable Development Goals Roadshow 2018 appeared first on TFA | Public Affairs Bristol • Reading • London.