The spectacular meltdown of the North’s transport network continues following the introduction of the new nationwide timetable over two weeks ago. Northern Rail’s services have become so unreliable that a creative group of frustrated travellers have set up the ‘Northern Fail’ app to keep their fellow commuters updated as they are left stranded at stations across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Yorkshire and Merseyside.

The proportion of new homes built in Green Belt land doubled between 2015/16 and 2016/17 as was widely reported this last week. The MHCLG figures show that four percent of new homes were built on the Green Belt, compared to two percent the previous year. While new homes built on previously developed, or brownfield, land fell by five percent to 56%.

Despite support from the Mayor of London, Westminster City Council have recently put the proposals to pedestrianise Oxford Street on hold. Whilst this may be a politically motivated move, it may also be a good time to reflect on what we aim to achieve through pedestrianisation schemes in Central London. Often the solutions are more complex than transport and congestion issues, and involve questions of how urban spaces are used and function.

How much are your legs worth? Bit of an odd question, isn’t it? How do you attach a financial value to your mobility? Whilst a bus or car can get you to the shops, they can’t dance, kick a ball around the park with a child or climb a ladder for work. Whilst it may seem nigh on impossible to attach a financial value to intangible benefits, it’s a concept the insurance industry is quite comfortable with. For example, the loss of both legs could net you between £191,000 and £225,000 in compensation. However, Cristiano Ronaldo’s legs are reportedly insured for £90m. Clearly the value of a pair of legs is highly dependent on the owner.

Logistics is changing, and it's no wonder; we no longer wish to spend our down time in the supermarket buying essential goods. Approximately half of our retail spending is undertaken in "task mode" via online websites, i.e. purchasing everyday items such as washing powder and cleaning products. The remaining proportion is the battleground for comparison shopping, where actual experiences on the high street are needed to compete with online convenience.

The NPPF consultation came to a close at 11.45pm on 10th May. A not inconsiderable 27,000 responses were logged. Admittedly 5,000 of those responses do relate just to Veteran trees, but all the same the MHCLG’s plan to release a revised plan by the end of July still strikes me as slightly ambitious. This isn’t to say I’m not in favour of keeping up the momentum, but it does make you wonder just how quickly they are reading the responses.

Walk through any British city or major town and you will find many instances of magnificent buildings that exude exceptional design principles, are an impressive use of space, and are described in such terms as innovative, creative or inspiring.

It sometimes feels like ‘Housing, Housing, Housing’ is the political mantra of the twenty-tens, as ‘Education, Education, Education’ was the soundbite for New Labour two decades earlier. That’s why I question the credibility of Labour’s Green Paper, conveniently published just ahead of the local elections and filled with critical rhetoric.

Timekeepers Square is sensitive to the heritage of its Salford city centre location, but gated aspects of the scheme may prevent integration, finds Murray Graham.

A week of political overhaul got off to a hectic start on Monday, when Sajid Javid became the new Home Secretary following the resignation of Amber Rudd - later that day it was announced that James Brokenshire would replace Javid at MHCLG. You can learn more about the new Secretary of State here.