RAAC: Collapse-prone concrete found in parliament

Published

2 years ago

September 12, 2023

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Collapse-prone concrete has been found in the Houses of Parliament.

Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete, known as RAAC, was a common building material used in the post-war era as it was cheaper and lighter than traditional concrete.

But it is now proving a nightmare for the government as it has been found to have a 30-year lifespan before becoming susceptible to collapse.

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Hundreds of schools have been checked for RAAC – with some told to partially or fully close buildings – while hospitals and airports have also been found to contain the concrete.

A parliamentary spokesperson said: “As part of routine ongoing investigations, RAAC was identified in one area of the Palace [of Westminster].

“Structural engineers have confirmed there is no immediate risk. Where RAAC is found, mitigations will be put in place as necessary.”

It is understood the concrete was found in an area which was built in 1974.

Elsewhere, more than 600 schools have now been checked for RAAC, according to senior Department for Education (DfE) officials.

A list of 147 schools where RAAC had been found was released last week, but this was already a week out of date.

Permanent secretary at DfE, Susan Acland-Hood, and chief operating officer Jane Cunliffe appeared before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Monday.

Ms Cunliffe said that in more than 600 schools assessed, two-thirds had not been found to have RAAC.

But the officials could not confirm how many surveys they were waiting to get back from schools.

Ms Cunliffe said: “It is very fast moving, we are doing tens of surveys every day.”

Meanwhile, Ms Acland-Hood praised Education Secretary Gillian Keegan, who was caught on camera last week complaining about not being thanked for doing a “f****** good job” over the unsafe concrete crisis, while others “sat on their arses”.

The official told MPs: “The secretary of state has been generous in recognising work done in the department.

“I don’t think she did intend to suggest others hadn’t been working hard. All I can say is on behalf of the department, I am really grateful.

“I think schools, responsible bodies and teachers up and down the country have worked unbelievably hard in what were very difficult circumstances, at short notice.”

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Concerns about the safety of the parliamentary estate – including fire risks and the presence of asbestos – have been longstanding for the mainly Victorian-era building.

Restoration is forecasted to cost several billion pounds, with both the Lords and Commons potentially having to relocate while work is carried out.

Politics

Budget 2025: Over a third of Britons think Rachel Reeves exaggerated bad news

Published

2 hours ago

December 2, 2025

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Budget 2025: Over a third of Britons think Rachel Reeves exaggerated bad news

Over a third of people think Rachel Reeves exaggerated economic bad news in the run-up to the budget – twice as many as thought the chancellor was being honest, a new Sky News poll has found.

Some 37% told a YouGov-Sky News poll that Ms Reeves made out things were worse than they really are. This is much higher than the 18% who said she was broadly honest, and the 13% who said things were better than she presented.

This comes in an in-depth look at the public reaction to the budget by YouGov, which suggests widespread disenchantment in the performance of the chancellor.

Just 8% think the budget will leave the country as a whole better off, while 2% think it will leave them and their family better off.

Some 52% think the country will be worse off because of the budget, and 50% think they and their family will be worse off.

This suggests the prime minister and chancellor will struggle to sell last week’s set-piece as one that helps with the cost of living.

Some 20% think the budget worried too much about help for older people and didn’t have enough for younger people, while 23% think the reverse.

The poll found 57% think the chancellor broke Labour’s election promises, while 13% think she did not and 30% are not sure. Some 54% said the budget was unfair, including 16% of Labour voters.

And it arguably gets worse…

This comes as the latest Sky News-Times-YouGov poll showed Labour and the Tories are now neck and neck among voters.

The two parties are tied on 19% each, behind Reform UK on 26%. The Greens are on 16%, while the Liberal Democrats are on 14%.

This is broadly consistent with last week, suggesting the budget has not had a dramatic impact on people’s views.

However, the verdict on Labour’s economic competence has declined further post-budget.

Asked who they would trust with the economy, Labour are now on 10% – lower than Liz Truss, who oversaw the 2022 mini-budget, and also lower than Jeremy Corbyn in the 2019 election.

The Tories come top of the list of parties trusted on the economy on 17%, with Reform UK second on 13%, Greens on 8% and Lib Dems on 5%. Nearly half, 47%, don’t know or say none of them.

Only 57% of current Labour voters say the party would do the best job at managing the economy, falling to 25% among those who voted Labour in the 2024 election.

Some 63% of voters think Ms Reeves is doing a bad job, including 20% of current Labour voters, while just 11% of all voters think she is doing a good job.

A higher proportion – 69% – think Sir Keir Starmer is doing a bad job.

Politics

Atkins says SEC has ‘enough authority’ to drive crypto rules forward in 2026

Published

4 hours ago

December 2, 2025

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Atkins says SEC has 'enough authority' to drive crypto rules forward in 2026

Paul Atkins, chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, said that the agency can continue advancing digital asset regulation without legislation from Congress, signaling his expectations for the industry in 2026.

In a CNBC interview released on Tuesday, Atkins said the SEC was providing “technical assistance” as Congress considered legislation for digital asset regulation, likely referring to the market structure bill working its way through the US Senate. Atkins said that although the agency’s operations were impacted by the longest US government shutdown in the country’s history, he continued to make progress on “rules that are focused on helping [the crypto] sector.”

“We have enough authority to drive forward,” said Atkins. “I’m looking forward to having an innovation exemption that we’ve been talking about now. We’ll be able to get that out in a month or so.”

*SEC Chair Paul Atkins speaking on Tuesday before the NYSE opening bell. Source:* *Vimeo*

Atkins, whom the US Senate confirmed to chair the SEC in April after his nomination by US President Donald Trump, has taken steps to reduce the number of enforcement actions against crypto companies, including by issuing no-action letters for decentralized physical infrastructure networks.

His actions align with many of the policy directives from the White House under Trump, who has issued several executive orders touching on crypto and blockchain.

The SEC chair rang the opening bell at the NYSE on Tuesday, outlining his plans for the agency “on the cusp of America’s 250th anniversary.”

US regulators are still awaiting progress on a market structure bill

Lawmakers on the US Senate Agriculture Committee and the Senate Banking Committee are taking steps to move forward with a digital asset market structure bill, which will outline the regulatory authority of agencies, including the SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission, over cryptocurrencies.

Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott said that the committee planned to have the bill ready for markup in December.