The chairman of a North East listed property investment fund has slated working-from-home as a “useless” initiative forcing “productivity towards zero”.
John Newlands is chair of Newcastle-based Develop North PLC, which changed it name from TOC Property Backed Lending Trust in May, a fund launched six years ago to build up a multimillion-pound development cash pot. The fund supports residential and commercial projects across the North East and Scotland and has published results for the six months ending May 31, a period of economic disruption triggered by inflationary pressures and prolonged impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The figures show that the total value of the company’s portfolio now stands at £23.9m from 19 live projects, following growth of £6.7m in the gross value of loans and receivables. Mr Newlands, who left Brewin Dolphin as head of investment five years ago, uses his interim report to hail a recent uplift in construction activity, but criticizes the enforced working-from-home initiative.
