Latest news with #Barratt
Scoop
a day ago
- Scoop
Dangerous Driver Feels The Force
A patched gang-member faces court after a near head-on collision with a Police unit near Kawakawa on Tuesday afternoon. Mid-North Area Response Manager, Senior Sergeant Mark Barratt says two Police units were travelling along Ruapekapeka Road. 'Just after 3pm, out of nowhere a small hatchback appeared and was allegedly travelling at speed, on the wrong side of the road, and narrowly avoided hitting one of the units,' he says. 'Staff quickly radioed in the job.' Meanwhile, the units turned around and soon caught up with the hatchback. 'A traffic stop was carried out and both occupants were taken into custody without incident,' Senior Sergeant Barratt says. The driver was established to be a 50-year-old patched Barbarian Stormtrooper. Senior Sergeant Barratt says the man has been charged with dangerous driving and will appear in the Whangārei District Court today. 'The man was also sought by Police on an unrelated matter and will face that charge in court today. 'It's fortunate our staff were not caught up in this man's frankly dangerous behaviour, and they were able to catch up with him.'
Forbes
2 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Barratt Redrow Shares Dive 9% On Profit Warning, Completions Miss
Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg Barratt Redrow shares sank sharply on Tuesday morning, after the FTSE 100 company warned that legacy issues would hit profits and announced lower-than-expected completions for the last financ At 377.4p per share, Barratt was the UK's worst-performing blue chip share and down 9.4% on the day. The builder said it expected to book 'additional legacy property liabilities' of £248 million following its acquisition of Redrow last year. Some £98 million of these liabilities relate to fire safety and issues with reinforced concrete frames that materialised during the second half, it said. Stripping out these adjustments, the company predicted adjusted pre-tax profit would meet market expectations. It achieved cost synergies of £69 million from the Redrow tie-up. It has targeted total savings of £100 million. Completions Drop Barratt said total home completions came in at 16,565 during the 52 weeks to 29 June. This was down from 17,972 in the prior financial year, and below a forecast 16,800-17,200. This included 538 joint venture completions, roughly in line with financial 2024 but below a targeted 600. Barratt said that its completions miss was chiefly down to fewer international and investor completions in London. For the current financial year, Barratt predicted total completions of between 17,200 and 17,800, including 600 completions from its joint ventures. The company maintained its medium-term target of 22,000 completions per year. The housebuilder finished financial 2026 with net cash of £772 million, down from £868.5 million in the prior period but above expectations. The business also announced plans to repurchase up to £100 million of its shares by the end of the current financial year. Positive Outlook Chief executive David Thomas commented that 'against a challenging market backdrop, we have delivered a solid performance this year. Our adjusted profits are in line with market expectations, despite home completions being slightly below our guided range.' He said that 'although demand during the year has been impacted by consumer caution and mortgage rates not falling as quickly as hoped, there remains a long-term structural under-supply of housing in this country.' Thomas added that 'our increased scale, three market-leading brands and strong land pipeline put us in a unique position to rapidly accelerate volume delivery as consumer confidence strengthens and the benefits of planning reform materialise at a local level.' Mixed Reception Analyst Aarin Chiekrie of Hargreaves Lansdown commented that 'Barratt Redrow's been ticking along nicely over the last year, despite some hurdles such as increased stamp duty and slow changes to increasing planning approvals.' He added that 'sales rates are moving in the right direction and the integration of the Barratt and Redrow businesses has continued at pace,' despite home completions missing expectations. Mark Crouch, analyst at eToro, said Barratt's share price fall shows that 'even well-built businesses can struggle when the ground beneath the sector begins to crack.' He said that 'despite government assurances, planning reform remains sticky, while build costs are still elevated, and demand is softening as high interest rates and fiscal drag weigh on affordability.' Royston Wild owns shares in Barratt Redrow
The Herald Scotland
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Housebuilders to pay £100m after probe into information-sharing
The payment, which is set to go into affordable housing programmes across the UK, would be the largest ever secured by the CMA through commitments from firms under investigation. The CMA will now consult on the commitments until July 24 and, if accepted, it will mean the regulator does not need to rule on whether the companies broke competition law. It launched the probe last February amid concerns the firms were sharing commercially sensitive information, which could have impacted the development of sites and prices of new homes. The watchdog there were signs they had exchanged details about sales including pricing, number of property viewings and incentives offered to buyers such as upgraded kitchens or stamp duty contributions. Barratt was one of the firms involved (Image: NQ) Sarah Cardell, chief executive at the CMA, said: 'Housing is a critical sector for the UK economy and housing costs are a substantial part of people's monthly spend, so it's essential that competition works well. 'This keeps prices as low as possible and increases choice. 'As a result of the CMA's investigation, housebuilders are taking clear and comprehensive steps to ensure they comply with the law and don't share competitively sensitive information with their rivals. 'Alongside these measures, the housebuilders we investigated have agreed to pay £100 million towards affordable homes programmes, which will help communities up and down the country.' As well as the payment, the housebuilders have agreed legally-binding commitments not to share commercially sensitive information with rivals, such as the prices that houses were sold for, except in 'limited circumstances', the CMA said. READ MORE: They have also agreed to work with the Home Builders Federation and Homes for Scotland to develop industry-wide guidance on information sharing. The original probe involved eight builders, but Barratt and Redrow have since merged. The firms said the offer of voluntary commitments does not mean they admit any wrongdoing. FTSE 100 listed Barratt Redrow said its share of the combined payment would be £29 million. 'Barratt Redrow welcomes the CMA's consultation on the voluntary commitments and will continue to work constructively with the CMA throughout the process,' it said. Among other listed firms involved in the probe, Vistry said its share would be £12.8 million, while Bellway added it would pay £13.5 million.
Sky News
09-07-2025
- Business
- Sky News
UK's biggest housebuilders to pay record sum after CMA investigation into sensitive information-sharing
The UK's biggest housebuilders are set to pay a record sum to fund affordable housing after the competition regulator investigated sensitive information sharing among the firms. A total of £100m, paid for by seven companies, will go to affordable housing programmes across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, following a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) investigation. The inquiry was launched last year due to concerns that the companies were sharing commercially sensitive information, which could influence the prices of new homes. There was concern that the housebuilders - Barratt Redrow, Bellway, Berkeley Group, Bloor Homes, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry - exchanged details about property sales, including pricing, viewing numbers and buyer incentives such as upgraded kitchens or stamp duty contributions. It's resulted in an agreement to make the combined £100m payment - the largest secured via a commitment from companies under CMA investigation. Hundreds of new homes could be funded with the money, the CMA said, helping low-income households, first-time buyers and vulnerable people. The businesses have voluntarily agreed to pay the sum and have not acknowledged wrongdoing. No finding of rule-breaking or illegality has been made. What next? They have also offered to sign up to legally binding commitments to prevent anticompetitive behaviour. Among the proposals advanced by the companies was an agreement not to share some information, like prices houses were sold for, with other housebuilders, except in limited circumstances, and to work with the Home Builders Federation and Homes for Scotland to develop industry-wide guidance on information sharing. The CMA has said it will consult on the changes. If accepted, the commitments will become legally binding, and the CMA will not need to decide whether the housebuilders broke competition law. Initially, eight companies were under investigation, but following a merger of Barratt Homes and Redrow, the number became seven. "Housing is a critical sector for the UK economy and housing costs are a substantial part of people's monthly spend, so it's essential that competition works well. This keeps prices as low as possible and increases choice," the CMA chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said.
Daily Mail
09-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Housebuilders pledge £100m for affordable homes but deny keeping prices high after competition probe
Seven housing developers have pledged a total of £100million for affordable housing programmes after an investigation into anticompetitive behaviour in the sector. Britain's competition watchdog launched a probe early last year amid concerns the country's top homebuilders were sharing commercially sensitive information, thereby potentially keeping prices artificially high. The Competition and Markets Authority on Wednesday said Barratt Redrow, Bellway, Berkeley Group, Bloor Homes, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry have agreed to a package of commitments to address its 'concerns'. However, the seven firms do not admit any 'liability or wrongdoing' for any of the conduct. If the package is formally accepted, the CMA will also drop its investigation into whether the housebuilders broke competition law. The CMA launched an investigation last year following concerns the builders exchanged competitively sensitive details about sales including pricing, property viewing numbers and incentives offered to buyers. The government will allocate the payment to affordable homes programmes across all four nations, including giving funding directly to devolved governments, the CMA said. Some funding, for example, will be given to the Affordable Homes Programme in England which is administered by Homes England. Registered bodies, such as housing associations, charities and local authorities, will be able to bid for funds from the programmes to support the capital costs of building affordable homes for rent or sale, the CMA added. As well as the £100million payment to be split between affordable housing programmes, the housebuilders have agreed to refrain from sharing information except in limited circumstances. The CMA said it will now consult on the proposals. Vistry, Barratt Redrow, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Bellway said in separate statements they had engaged proactively with the CMA, and their payment offers did not constitute admissions of wrongdoing. In its statement, Barratt Redrow, said: 'Barratt Redrow has engaged proactively and constructively with the CMA throughout its investigation, including by voluntarily offering binding commitments alongside the other Parties in response to the potential concerns investigated by the CMA, and with a view to resolving expeditiously the investigation. 'The offer of voluntary commitments does not constitute an admission of any wrongdoing by Barratt Redrow and nothing in the commitments may be construed as implying that Barratt Redrow agrees with any concerns expressed by the CMA in the investigation.' Taylor Wimpey said: 'Taylor Wimpey welcomes the CMA's intention to conclude its investigation by accepting voluntary commitments. We will continue to work constructively with the CMA as they conclude the process.' This is Money contacted Berkeley Group and Bloor Homes for comment. Sarah Cardell, chief executive at the CMA, said: 'Housing is a critical sector for the UK economy and housing costs are a substantial part of people's monthly spend, so it's essential that competition works well. 'This keeps prices as low as possible and increases choice. 'As a result of the CMA's investigation, housebuilders are taking clear and comprehensive steps to ensure they comply with the law and don't share competitively sensitive information with their rivals. 'Alongside these measures, the housebuilders we investigated have agreed to pay £100million towards affordable homes programmes, which will help communities up and down the country.' The CMA will now consult on the proposed commitments before deciding whether to accept them. The consultation closes at 5pm on 24 July 2025. The CMA probe, which looked into the anti-competitive practices of seven housing developers, was initially launched following a market study on housebuilding. The watchdog has previously accepted commitments from pharmaceutical companies Vifor Pharma and Aspen, although this payment would be the largest secured to date. If accepted, the commitments will become legally binding and mean that it is not necessary for the CMA to decide whether the housebuilders breached competition law.
