Good morning. Here is your AM bulletin, with the latest news and views from EG, as well as a few of the best bits from the morning papers.
The prime minister is expected to end speculation on the future of HS2 in his keynote party conference speech tomorrow. But the verdict – expected to be that the central London terminus will be kept, but the Manchester leg cut – might not go down well with the Manchester crowd.
Meanwhile, The Guardian takes the opportunity to make a trip to Old Oak Common.
The government has launched another “towns fund”, this time handing out £20m each over 10 years to 55 towns that have been “overlooked and taken for granted”. By all the previous towns funds and levelling up funding, one assumes.
RoyaleLife’s 29 residential caravan parks and properties across the UK are about to hit the market. The company, owned by billionaire Robert Bull, fell into administration in August.
The industry has reacted with some surprise to the news that John Lewis Partnership chair Dame Sharon White will step down in February 2025 after her five-year term ends.
And UK real estate investment manager Moorfield Group has launched a £500m REIT focused on opportunities in the rental market.
Greggs expects 2023 to be “a record year” for new store openings. It already has a net 82 in the bag, but expects between 135 and 145 before the year is over.
Brookfield is buying Banks Renewables, one of the UK’s largest onshore wind farm developers, in a $1bn deal.
And Liz Truss – who was prime minister for a month and a half this time last year – has unveiled a three-point growth plan. It includes a target to build 500,000 homes a year. She told fans at the Tory conference that there was too much focus on “protecting newts or installing a bat bridge” rather than building homes.
Meanwhile, The FT (£) tales a closer look at ESG ratings for companies and asks who they actually serve.
Evergrande’s shares have surged by 42% after the Chinese developer was readmitted to the Hong Kong stock exchange.
And finally, the trial of Donald Trump has begun in New York. This court case – one of many the former president is facing – focuses on a potential $2.2bn fraud in his real estate empire. Challenging accusations of fiddling valuations, one of his many attornies scoffed: “That is not fraud, that’s real estate.”
