EDITOR’S COMMENT “Too much moaning and groaning and not enough doing”, may well be a line Legal & General chief executive Nigel Wilson whips out relatively frequently (and in this week’s EG Interview), but it does perfectly sum up the current state of affairs within government.
It is a common theme we whip out on this page as well, to be honest. This feeling that government – our current government at least – is a bit all talk and no trousers. A government more concerned with having an argument with its opposition than it is with actually making a difference. That’s the problem of having an opposition, I suppose. It is, by its very definition, there to counterargue, to want and to fight for whatever is the opposite of what you want and what you are fighting for.
And that’s why, if we ever really want the doing done, it is going to be up to the private sector to do it.
Over the past decade there has been little stability in government. We’re now on to our 14th housing minister in 12 years, prime minister number three in three years and chancellor number four in just four months.
It is no surprise the real estate sector has “failed miserably”, as Wilson says, to get the government to replicate what the private sector is doing to build our economy, to invest at local and national levels. If you are always looking over your shoulder, wondering who is going to stab you in the back or whether you are going to last more than a couple of weeks, let alone months or years in a role, it’s impossible to get anything done.
Now, I’m quite a big fan of having to look over your shoulder a bit and of being kept on my toes (and of keeping others on theirs). There’s a benefit to always slightly fearing that someone is going to come and steal your lunch – it makes you work harder and smarter. It makes you think more about the people you are doing your job for. Competition is great. It is powerful. Or at least it is when done properly.
And this is where real estate leads. This sector thrives on competition. Everyone wants to be the best. They want to give the best advice, create the best building, deliver the best service, the most sustainable asset, you name it. This industry chases superlatives. But competition within this industry is largely benign. Few are out to stab each other in the back. Yes, there might be some poaching of good people and of clients, but mostly this industry is locked in some sort of collaborative competition. It is a fight to be the best that ultimately serves the community and rarely damages it.
Government could do with learning a little of that from this sector.
And this is what I love about this sector and why every year, around this time, I take great pride in being able to step up on a stage, spend a few minutes talking about the great power the sector has and then hand out award after award to those companies and individuals that have done great things.
This is what this sector is about. It is about doing the do. There may be a little moaning and groaning that comes with that but largely the industry does. It makes things, it creates places and spaces, it effects change. And that is something to celebrate.
Which, of course, we did last night at the 18th annual EG Awards. What a night, what a fantastic industry you are and what a phenomenal change you are making. Keep pushing harder, keep ignoring the moaning and groaning and keep doing the do, our country needs it of you.
Congratulations to all of EG’s winners. Pick up next week’s magazine for photos and reporting from the biggest bash in real estate, and click here for click here for a full list of winners.
To send feedback, e-mail samantha.mcclary@eg.co.uk or tweet @samanthamcclary or @EGPropertyNews
