Blackfriar: ‘Silver bullet’ that could put the North in the driving seat

They claim the Government’s Help to Buy scheme can be likened to a silver bullet – mortgage availability has been the brake on recovery and Help to Buy has the potential to release that brake.

They expect the North and the Midlands to benefit most from the scheme as these areas have the highest levels of affordability and the highest levels of deposit constraint.

They rightly point out that house prices in many Northern regions are lower today than they were when national house prices troughed and they say that Help to Buy could be the catalyst for house price recovery.

Mortgage approvals across the UK are currently weighted towards the South East. During 2012, the southern regions of the country accounted for 50 per cent of mortgage approvals and the northern regions 35 per cent.

In a rare blow for the capital, Jefferies believes that London is likely to benefit least from Help to Buy – London’s residential market has the highest house prices, the largest rented sector and the lowest reliance on mortgage finance. Jefferies’ research shows that the North East, Yorkshire and Humberside and the North West appear the most affordable regions, followed by Scotland, and the East and West Midlands.

This is all good news for York-based Persimmon. Jefferies says the group is regarded as having the most attractive landbank in the sector and has for a long time been a major player in the strategic land market.

It’s been a long time coming, but maybe the Help to Buy initiative could give the North the long needed leg up that it has been calling for.

Graham Holden, the outgoing chief executive at paving specialist Marshalls, will have presided over a momentous decade at the company by the time he retires next year. Holden, 53, is credited with steering the Huddersfield-based firm through the worst economic downturn in living memory.

Marshalls, which supplies products ranging from limestone slabs to steel bollards, traditionally hires from within its own ranks and Holden was running the landscape products part of the business before his promotion to chief executive.

During his time at the top, he oversaw record profits during the years from 2004 to 2007.

But as he says himself: “The world changed in 2008.”

It has been a tough five-year period. Last year Marshalls fell into the red as wet weather and the weak economy forced a costly overhaul. A £21.5m restructuring charge pushed the group to an £11.2m pre-tax loss.

Holden has had to undertake some unpleasant tasks. The firm cut its workforce by 15 per cent in 2012 meaning that Marshalls ended the year with 2,050 staff. That’s down from about 2,800 in 2007 before the economic slump.

Revenues fell 7.3 per cent to £309.7m as the second-wettest year on record wiped £13m from its sales.

“It was nice to see the back of 2012,” admits Holden.

The paving stone sector faces another tough year, as public sector work shrinks and consumers remain cautious.

Last year was Marshall’s second major wave of cost-cutting since the downturn started in 2008.

“The scale of what we have done is very significant,” said Holden.

“It’s never pleasant for the business but that’s done.”

Analysts view Holden’s departure as a blow for the company, but said his decision to stay on for up to a year should ensure a smooth handover.

Analyst Jon Bell, at Shore Capital, said: “Graham Holden has been an excellent CEO, particularly during a period of highly-challenging market conditions throughout which he has taken the necessary steps to promote and protect the company’s best interests.

“He will leave Marshalls in good shape, in our view, having taken decisive action during the height of the downturn, and maintaining Marshalls’ profitability at a time when many of the company’s peers have not.”

Analyst Rachael Applegate, at Panmure, agreed: “We view Graham’s departure as a loss for the business.”

But she said the business is extremely well placed to take advantage of economic recovery in the UK.

During his tenure Holden has been an exemplary chief executive.

In 2011, he chose to defer £94,000 of his bonus and he has voluntarily requested that his 2013 salary be cut by 20 per cent.

He has personally ensured that the quarries the company uses in India not only eschew child labour, the company has put in place programmes to help children who have been put to work.

Holden now has his sights set on one or two non-executive directorships to complement his non-exec role at Hull-based telecoms group KCom.

He should have no shortage of interested parties.