N. Ireland’s Cabe vows to fight PFI

Northern Ireland’s newly established answer to Cabe has vowed to challenge the PFI system and significantly raise architectural quality in the province. In his first comments since taking over as chairman of the Architecture & the Built Environment ministerial advisory group (MAG) last week, leading architect Barrie Todd said peace in the province provided an opportunity to improve design but dismissed PFI as a system that put “money before design quality”. The group will advise the Department of Culture, Arts & Leisure (DCAL) on design quality, and is expected to set up a design review panel for major projects amid a boom in private sector development. Public sector spending of £16 billion on building projects is also projected over the next 10 years.

Building Design