Temp

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/24/at-long-last-we-have-a-brexit-deal-and-its-as-bad-as-you-thought ".. the Institute for Fiscal Studies estimating it will knock more than 2% off growth and see inflation climb to 3.5%. That means fewer good jobs, lower incomes and higher prices"

Actually could be more after 5 years but the EU has right to apply a tariff if we do.

We get back 25% of what the EU currently have over 5 years.

https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/brexit-deal-erasmus-study-abroad-university-turing-scheme-boris-johnson-808367 "The move to leave the Erasmus scheme has been criticised by Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who called the decision “cultural vandalism”. She tweeted: “There will be lots of focus, rightly, on the economic costs of Brexit. But ending UK participation in Erasmus, an initiative that has expanded opportunities and horizons for so many young people, is cultural vandalism by the UK Government.”" The government has proposed its own scheme to replace it. Yeah sure. Like they did with EU R&D funding.

. http://planninglawblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/permitted-development-for-outbuildings.html

Google found.. https://kingwest.co.uk/guide-to-converting-outbuildings-into-living-spaces/

More brickwork mostly. In some places oak posts.

I was reading earlier that Gibralta might be joining the Schengen area meaning the Spanish won't need to show passports to cross the border... but us Brits will still need to. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/12/22/deal-nearly-done-gibraltar-join-schengen-area-leaving-closer/

My builder told me that the nhbc require lead on plinths so we have lead on top dressed about 1" down the sloping face.

Most members will apply for the CIL exemption but I was interested to see that scammers are targeting developers and getting them to pay the CIL to them.. Planning grants are public documents so scamers can easily find out who is expecting to have to pay the CIL. https://veritau.co.uk/news/infrastructure-payment-scam "A fraudster will contact the developer, pretending to be from the council, asking for the payment to be made. They provide their own bank account details. Payments as large as £40k have been requested by fraudsters using emails that look genuine. If you are at all unsure, do not proceed with payment, and contact the council."

All we need now is 27 countries and our parliament to agree it.

Even if a deal is announced I'd wait until the VAT rules are clear.

I assume BTL means Buy/build to Let? Sorry if you already know this but are you aware of the VAT issue? You can normally reclaim the VAT on a new dwelling or conversion but NOT if its going to be let straight away. https://www.isurv.com/info/390/features/11494/taxation_vat_costs_of_building_to_rent#:~:text=The letting of residential property,it incurs on the development. Its a strange quirk due to the difference between "zero" and "exempt".

Wont be soon unfortunately. So far I've only made a test panel to teach myself and that was done some time ago pre covid. This is it propped up on a wall light. You can see I didn't get the sides straight and some lines aren't smooth curves.

Thats what I was planning to do. Was going to use a flat panel ceiling light as the back-light.

How petty of them. The flashing is an integral part of the gutter in my opinion because it would not be needed if it wasn't for their gutter. They want you to do it so they can claim any further damp is due to your flashing rather than their gutter. Incidentally damp is possibly a statutory nuisance... https://www.newcastle.gov.uk/services/environment-and-waste/environmental-health-and-pollution/statutory-nuisance/accumulations However not all councils are as proactive. Some don't have the resources to take action. It would be the Environmental Health Officer you speak to but getting them involved would certainly sour relations. If you decide to get the flashing done yourself make sure the upstand on their gutter is high enough first. It must be at least 150mm tall or water will get behind your flashing no matter how high your flashing is. You could make this a condition of agreeing to do it. Taller eg 200mm would be even better. If you decide to make an issue of it. I would write to them recorded delivery. Warn them that not doing the flashing will likely lead to water ingress into both properties and could amount to a statutory nuisance for which you could seek damages. Point out that, having warned them in writing of this risk, if they proceed anyway and damage is caused they could also be liable for additional damages for negligence.

There are companies that can put stained glass into a sealed unit but not sure about triple glazing. I had a go at making a simple A3 size abstract panel and it came out OK so you could DIY it if you had the time.

+1 Remember when your school teacher taught you about "lowest common multiples" in maths ? If building outer leaf in brick and inner leaf in block there is a height at which X number of brick courses is the same height as Y number of block courses. So if you fill the trench to that height below DPC you dont have to cut any bricks or blocks.

Pressure washer. The actual channel can also be rodded if you provide access at the end.

Interesting caller to Radio 4 today. She was British married to a Dutch national. Home in Holland but working in the UK on a two year contract. Said she had to be in Holland on 1st Jan to register implying she would loose right to live in Holland with her husband if she wasn't. Very nearly got stuck in the UK due to covid closure of port.

I'm 99% sure that keeping the steels led some idiot to conclude that the final building would be "non-standard construction". https://limitlessmonks.co/non-standard-construction-property/

At the end of the day conversions and new builds both end up paying the same 0% VAT. Its just the route to achieving that which is different... Materials In both cases (new and conversion) materials are charged to you at 20% and you reclaim all of the 20%. Services Services are treated differently: Conversions: Builder/electrician charges you 5% and you reclaim the 5% New Build: Builder/electrician charges you 0%. (nothing to reclaim). Supply and fit (eg Materials and Services) on one invoice Conversions: Builder/electrician charges you 5% on both labour and materials and you reclaim the 5% New Build: Builder/electrician charges you 0% on both labour and materials (nothing to reclaim). That's right. Some trades will be reluctant to 0% or 5% rate their supply and fit because they will have paid 20% on the materials when they purchased them. However they MUST be persuaded. If you pay them 20% in error you cannot reclaim that back from HMRC. They can get the 20% back that they paid when they submit their VAT return. Sometimes it helps to give them a certificate (aka letter) with your planning reference details on it and suitable magic words like "I certify this work was carried out on a new build/conversion". In summary: If you buy PV panels yourself and pay an electrician to fit them to a property being converted you should pay: 20% on the Panels (which you reclaim). 5% on the electrician (which you also reclaim). If buying panels from ebay check they can/will provide a VAT receipt!

I can't see how your bath works otherwise. Lets call the two pipes 110mm (WC) and 50mm (basin/bath). Even if the 110mm pipe is only just above floor level then the top connection into it for the 50mm pipe to the bath/basins would be something like 175-200mm above floor level. Too high for a bath?. With the manifold approach the 110mm pipe for the WC can be raised up (if you use WC with horizontal outlet). That means the 50mm pipe can then run under the 110mm pipe at floor level as per your drawing.

As its a knock down and rebuild you can also reclaim a lot of VAT. Sadly the rules for that can be tricky. Some things should be zero rated to you so you don't pay VAT in the first place. An example of that would be demolition services. In general: Services/labour should be zero rated (so nothing to reclaim). Materials are standard rated (and you reclaim it). "Supply and fit" should be zero rated for both elements. If you get a quote for services that says inc VAT ask for a requote as its a new build. Any problems come back here for advice.

Welcome to the forum! Yes. The new planning grant will come with a new CIL liability. The CIL liability only takes effect when you start implementing the Planning Grant. So there is no liability for the old one UNLESS the current owner has already started implementing it. You might suggest your solicitor ask the seller to confirm that it hasn't in writing. I mention it because "starting" is sometimes done to preserve an old Planning Grant that is about to expire. Once you have started a Planning Grant normally lasts forever. How long has it got left? Ideally you want at least a year to give time to get your new application approved before the old one expires. If you are building the house to live in yourself you can apply for an exemption from the CIL however it is extremely important to follow the process for claiming the exemption to the letter using the right forms because if you don't you can find yourself liable for it with no way back. Do not start any work on site untill you have confirmation that the exemption application has been processed. Some people have been caught out by letters from the council saying that as self builders they will be exempt. That's true but ONLY if you formally claim the exemption. The process is detailed at the top of Form 7 here (in the arrows). https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200136/policy_and_legislation/70/community_infrastructure_levy/5 Note that you must live there as your principle residence for 3 years after completion as well.