Hello and welcome to the second Connect newsletter. As mentioned in our previous correspondence, times are tough for all of us in the industry.  Not only are there adverse market conditions but it is also necessary to consider the environmental impact of our present and future developments. As I write, the world's leaders are horse-trading and wheeler-dealing ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in order to come up with a new protocol on climate change. The aim is to come up with targets to reduce global emissions to prevent irreversible damage to the environment. The need to act now on climate change has weakened the resolve of even the previously sceptical. And that high level rhetoric starts to impact on our daily lives and upon our industry in particular.

"Sustainable", "low-carbon" and "eco-friendly" - I'm sure you are all very familiar with these terms by now - their infiltration into our vocabulary has been bought about by the Climate Change Act of 2008 which made the need to reduce carbon emissions a legal requirement. The Code for Sustainable Homes soon followed, setting targets as a condition of planning.