Federica Guidi has quit as Italy’s economic development minister Matteo Renzi’s government was shaken on Thursday by the abrupt resignation of Federica Guidi, the economic development minister, amid allegations that she had sought to shape last year’s budget law to favour an oil project from which her partner stood to benefit financially. Ms Guidi’s departure represents a significant blow for Mr Renzi, the centre-left prime minister, who has cast himself as a young reformer far removed from the sclerotic and often corrupt ways that Italian politics has been run in the past. More On this topic IN Europe Ms Guidi announced her resignation in a letter to Mr Renzi while the prime minister was in the middle of a four-day visit to the US. Ms Guidi is well-known in Italian industry and internationally, since she was responsible for trade and investment policy and often led commercial delegations around the world, recently including visits to Iran and Egypt. In her letter to Mr Renzi, Ms Guidi said she was “absolutely certain” of her “good faith” and the “appropriateness” of her work”. But she was resigning “as a matter of political opportunity”. Mr Renzi said he “respected” and “shared” her decision, praising her work over the past two years as “serious, decisive and competent”. Ms Guidi’s departure came after the contents emerged of a wiretapped conversation in late 2014 during which she reassured Gianluca Gemelli, her partner, that the annual budget law would include an amendment to help speed up production at the Tempa Rossa oilfield, in southern Italy. The project is run by Total, the French oil company, and Mr Gemelli was due to benefit from it financially as a contractor. Italy’s opposition parties immediately cried foul, demanding Ms Guidi’s resignation but adding that Maria Elena Boschi, the reforms minister and a close ally of Mr Renzi, should join her in quitting. In the wiretapped conversations, Ms Guidi said that Ms Boschi “agreed” that the amendment to the budget law should pass. Ms Boschi has been under fire since last year’s rescue of Banca Etruria, the Tuscan bank, at which her father was a high-ranking official before it collapsed. “They all collude, they are all accomplices, their hands are dirty with oil and money,” tweeted Beppe Grillo, the former comedian who leads the populist Five Star Movement, Italy’s second-strongest party. They all collude, they are all accomplices, their hands are dirty with oil and money – Beppe Grillo Ms Guidi’s resignation is the second high-profile scandal to rock Mr Renzi’s government. Maurizio Lupi, transport and infrastructure minister, was forced to quit last year after prosecutors and police unveiled a ring of corruption involving some of the nation’s most lucrative public works projects. But Ms Guidi’s departure could be more damaging because it comes ahead of municipal elections in June and a constitutional reform referendum in the autumn which will be tests for Mr Renzi. The prime minister’s ruling Democratic party remains solidly ahead of its rivals in opinion polls. But it has felt an increasing challenge from the Five Star Movement, which has put the fight against corruption at the top of its agenda. Ms Guidi’s alleged move to favour an oil production project could also damage the government ahead of an April 17 referendum to ban offshore drilling near Italian coastlines. While opposition parties, including the Five Star Movement, have urged Italians to vote in favour of the ban, Mr Renzi has called for abstention. This could lead the referendum to fail since it needs more than 50 per cent turnout to be valid. But the circumstances of Ms Guidi’s resignation could help galvanise support for the measure. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link

The chief executive of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is to retire over the coming year. NDA chief executive John Clarke John Clarke took up the post in April 2012 after joining its board as commercial director in 2008. He also served as its business planning director. “I have been honoured and privileged to lead the NDA and its exceptional people through some major changes,” said Clarke. “It’s a demanding role and now is the time to hand the reins to someone who can take the organisation through the next phase of its development over the next five years.” NDA chairman Stephen Henwood said: “John has made a major contribution to the NDA and its mission to safely clean up the UK’s nuclear legacy. “Through his leadership, drive and commitment, John has improved performance at Sellafield with a new operating model, delivered an integrated approach to accelerating decommissioning across the estate and created an optimised strategy, resulting in increased value to the taxpayer.” At end of July the High Court found that the NDA had “fudged” and “manipulated” the tender process for a £7 billion contract to decommission 12 nuclear sites. The case was brought forward in 2014 by Energy Solutions – a member of the consortium which held the previous contract but was subequently replaced. The court has yet to decide on an appropriate level of compensation.   Members of the two other consortia which lost out are also considering legal action, the Times has reported. Source link

The firm revealed that reservations fell 20 per cent in the five months to May, as it reported its preliminary results for the 12 months to 30 April 2016. Sales were down 4 per cent for the year as a whole, while Berkeley raised £51m of profit by selling its ground rent portfolio. Reduced ground rent sales led to a 1.6 per cent fall in profit before tax, from £539.7m to 530.9m. Excluding ground rents, adjusted pre-tax profit was up by 5.6 per cent to £479.9m. Forward sales increased to 3.25bn from 2.95bn a year earlier. Chairman Tony Pidgley said: “The outcome of next week’s referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union is significant for the UK’s housebuilding and property sector. “Berkeley supports a vote to remain in the EU. London’s status as the world’s best big city is underpinned by labour mobility, cultural diversity and a constant influx of talent and investment from around the world, and the UK economy in turn is powered by the success of our capital city. “However, London will always be a world city and a highly desirable place to live, work and play. “For Berkeley, our brand, our land holdings and our forward sales will continue to differentiate and underpin our performance over the long term and, while we have a clear view about what the better outcome would be on Thursday 23 June, we are confident about the future for our business.” The group is also encouraged by London mayor Sadiq Khan’s “ambitious and pragmatic” approach to housing policy, Mr Pidgley added. Source link

Planning changes for domestic air source heat pumps in Scotland Published:  12 May, 2016 A change in Scottish planning law means planning permission is no longer required for the installation, alteration or replacement of a domestic air source heat pump, subject to a number of conditions. Following an amendment of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Order 1992, development of air source heat pumps in Scotland is now permitted providing; that the air source heat pump is only used to provide domestic heating or hot water; it is removed as soon as reasonably practical if the air source heat pump is no longer needed or not fit for purpose; and it complies with MCS Planning Standards or equivalent. There are also restrictions on the location of the air source heart pump, including impact on surrounding buildings. Heat pump manufacturer Dimplex has welcomed the decision and says it could encourage more Scottish homes to take advantage of renewable heat. Chris Stammers, product marketing director at Dimplex, said: “The climate in Scotland is well suited to air source heat pumps, a proven technology which is helping to drive down to cost of heating for thousands of householders – especially in rural areas which have no access to gas. Unfortunately though, the need to apply for planning permission has understandably put some people off. “With this change, it becomes easier for installers to sell the benefits of an air source heat pump and I’m confident once they understand the cost-savings that can be generated over its lifetime, many more householders will go green. “A Dimplex air source heat pump, for example, can pay back in as little as five years thanks to reduced energy bills and income generated through the Renewable Heat Incentive.” For full details about the amendment of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Order 1992, visit http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2016/126/article/3/made. Source link

The 2,550 acre Blythburgh Estate, which stretches along the Suffolk Heritage Coastland from Blythburgh to Walberswick is located in a popular and important coastal setting. It has a rich heritage including part of the Walberswick Nature Reserve, a designated nature reserve that includes one of the largest reedbeds in Britain and is part of the larger Suffolk Coast National Nature Reserve. The whole estate sits within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and much of the nature reserve is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), a designation for the finest sites for wildlife and natural features in England. The landA little over 1,034 acres of land is farmed on an arable rotation growing a variety of cereal and root crops with some land currently used for outdoor pigs. Most of it is farmed in hand with some crops grown under specialist annual cropping licences including seed potatoes and maize. There is currently no irrigation but with the benefit of water, the soil is suited to growing high value vegetable and salad crops. An application has been submitted for a large irrigation water abstraction licence and is presently being considered by the Environment Agency. There are around 75 acres of upland grass which is mainly permanent pasture for grazing and some 427 acres of heathland is largely grazed under an arrangement with Natural England. The marsh grassland includes 193 acres, part of which can be grazed.  The main areas of reed marshes next to the southern boundary of the estate form part of the largest continuous stand of reedbed in England and Wales. This site is acknowledged by the international Ramsar Convention, which is the intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. The total acreage of reedbed and salt marshland on the estate is around 482 acres. Across the estate is a variety of woodland ranging from areas planted for timber, amenity and sporting, through to the ungrazed heathland areas with varying tree densities. The main stocking is broad leaf with some evergreens. In all the woodland includes 299 acres. A separate block of over 546 acres, currently farmed on an arable rotation, together with a range of farm buildings with grain storage, is available under separate farming arrangement. Residential There is a portfolio of residential properties occupied on a variety of tenancies, which generate an annual rental income of around £30,240. SportingThe estate has a long history of extensive pheasant and partridge shooting which continues to be run on a commercial basis with the sporting rights are currently let to a third party until early 2022. The extensive network of tracks and free draining soils ensures there is good vehicular access to all of the drives. HistoryBetween the 16th and 18th centuries the marshland areas of the reserve were drained providing grazing land and during the Second World War, those around Walberswick were flooded to act as invasion defences. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s the marshes reverted to reedbeds creating a variety of habitats for wildlife including Marsh Harrier, Bearded Tit, Water Rail and Bittern which are now preserved in the reserve. A derelict Grade II listed windmill built in the late 18th century stands on the marshes and provides an important landscape feature as one of only two remaining drainage mills on the east Suffolk marshes. Near to a pair of cottages on the estate is the site where it is understood that Joe Kennedy Jr, eldest brother to US President John F Kennedy, died during World War II when his aeroplane exploded, when he was working on the secret mission, Project Anvil. Peter Start, Director of Savills in Ipswich, “The Blythburgh Estate is a rare proposition for a buyer offering a large farmable acreage combined with a significant nature reserve, a residential portfolio and some excellent sporting. Its diversity and popular location and not inconsiderable non-agricultural income in the region of £280,000 pa is likely to attract a range of buyers.” The Blythburgh Estate is now for sale through Savills at a guide price of £18 million for the whole. Source link