When times are changing, it’s time for change

EDITOR’S COMMENT: Dear reader, I have a favour to ask of you this week. Before you read what I write below, read the words of Hamish Dupree (pictured), head of London markets at WiredScore. Actually, do more than read his article, consume it. Entirely. Take on board every single word of it and let it sit for a while. Reflect on it and then act, speak out, and be the change. Then you can come back and read my words if you like, but I can guarantee they will not be anywhere near as powerful as Hamish’s. Thank you Hamish. I’m taking bets this week on just how long housing secretary Robert Jenrick is going to be able to hold on to his position. He is no Dominic Cummings when it comes to his relationship with the PM, so I’m not so sure he’ll be able to ride out the persistent “cash for favours” allegations over his green lighting of Richard Desmond’s £1bn Westferry scheme. I’m certain a reshuffle is the last thing on BoJo’s mind right now, but can we really see Jenrick holding on much past the end of this month? It’s a shame really. Jenrick spoke at one of our conferences back in January 2019 about the Cambridge-Milton Keynes-Oxford corridor and, while obviously very Tory, was passionate, engaged and wanting to do the right thing. He might have been the housing secretary that stuck. But if (I’d wager, when) all correspondence over Desmond’s 1,500-home scheme is published, I reckon Jenrick could become an example of Boris taking affirmative action on members of his team breaking (or bending) the rules. I’m sure if Jenrick does lose the housing secretary gig, though, he’ll turn up elsewhere within BoJo Corp. People always do turn up somewhere don’t they, even if they say they’ve had enough of the rat race. Rob Noel, formerly of Landsec, turning up as chairman of Hammerson this week certainly took me by surprise. A new chairman was definitely needed at Hammerson, and I’m sure Noel will bring some different insights and skill sets to the role, but it has never been that much of a secret that Noel doesn’t really do retail. He’s an offices man. He’s a London man, largely. Granted, being chairman of a company is very different from being chief executive, but there were very few people we spoke to this week who understood the move. Could this mean a return to offices for Hammerson? Physical retailing is on its knees (despite the queues at Primark), Hammerson has already launched its City Quarters plan to bring mixed-use into its retail sites and it does still own 10.4 acres of Shoreditch, where it is planning 1.4m sq ft of offices and affordable workspace, 175,000 sq ft of retail and 500 homes with joint venture partner Ballymore. I certainly hope Noel is well rested after his short break from Landsec – so much for the “I’ve had 33 years flat out, I need a break” – as he will definitely need a lot of energy jumping back into real estate today. He will, however, undoubtedly bring years of public company experience with him to the role, and who knows, perhaps his appointment will mean that whoever takes over from David Atkins as chief executive can come from a different background (please not another finance director). Perhaps we’ll see a CEO from a more operational background, a service-focused background, a more diverse background. Could this be the moment when we see a woman or a person of colour (perhaps both) running one of our major REITs? It is a moment in time when everything is changing, so I’m hopeful. To send feedback, e-mail samantha.mcclary@egi.co.uk or tweet @samanthamcclary or @estatesgazette