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‘The hypocrisy is staggering’: will swift bricks fall prey to government fears of Reform? (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 5 days ago by GreyShuck@feddit.uk to c/nature@feddit.uk
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On more than 50 occasions over the past three years, Hannah Bourne-Taylor has lugged an oversized brick through the parliament’s security screening.

Security staff know her fondly as “the swift brick lady”. But now Bourne-Taylor is having to ruffle political feathers over what appears the simplest of nature-friendly measures – a small legal clause requiring all new dwellings to include a £35 hollow brick, providing homes for endangered cavity-nesting birds including swifts, house martins, sparrows and starlings.

After walking naked except for a thong through London – twice – to raise awareness of the plight of swifts, winning a parliamentary debate and cross-party support for the brick, Bourne-Taylor is facing her greatest foe yet: a Labour government terrified of voters defecting to Reform.

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[–] Patch@feddit.uk 10 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

As someone who spends an inordinate amount of their life reviewing planning applications, it's notable that most new properties include swift bricks (and bat bricks) pretty much at standard now, even without the regulations. They're incredibly cheap and entirely non-obtrusive; from a conservation point of view it's a no brainer.

I imagine most that don't include it is more through either laziness or ignorance rather than a strategic choice to omit them. Having them in the regulations would seem an easy win.

[–] Uranium_Green@sh.itjust.works 3 points 5 days ago (3 children)

So these and a couple other types of bricks I've seen (ones with multiple holes to for masonry bees(?)), have surprisingly high costs for what they are.

While I don't take issue with the stated reasoning for the inclusions of the bricks; I am curious why the the cost is so high, and by extension, who (if anyone) is profiting off of the high costs of the bricks?

If the these become required, will every brick manufacturer be able to produce them, bringing the price of them down?

Are there any obvious unforseen issues with using them?

Is there a limit on their lifespan?

Do they need cleaning by the homeowner?

Fundementally, I think if there aren't any glaring flaws with the requirement for these then this would be an easy win for Labor to add

[–] MouldyCat@feddit.uk 3 points 5 days ago

who (if anyone) is profiting off of the high costs of the bricks?

If the these become required, will every brick manufacturer be able to produce them, bringing the price of them down?

They seem to be a generic concept - basically they are like bird houses in the shape of a brick, so anyone can make them. The ones I've seen from a quick internet search are all made of different types of plastic stuck together i.e. they are not a really simple thing to make. So I guess that, along with supply and demand (only one or two are needed per new house), is why they are relatively expensive.

[–] Patch@feddit.uk 3 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

So these and a couple other types of bricks I've seen (ones with multiple holes to for masonry bees(?)), have surprisingly high costs for what they are.

Really not sure where you're getting that impression from.

I've just looked it up from a supplier; the cheapest swift brick they sell is £11.50, and they have multiple around the £30 mark. A few larger ones for more money.

The same supplier sells bat bricks for similar, and bee bricks for £25.

Bearing in mind that the cost for a regular normal brick can be north of £1, depending on the specific colouring and design.

Considering the cost of building a whole house, an extra £60 on wildlife bricks doesn't seem that unreasonable.

[–] bedbeard@feddit.uk 3 points 5 days ago

is £35 a high cost for one of these? It would be 1 per property, sounds alright to me.

For your other questions I think this paragraph suggests they are good to go really (not sure about cleaning, do people clean out bird boxes?):

According to Bourne-Taylor, multibillion profit-making housebuilders have signalled in high-level government meetings they have no objections to the bricks, which are widely made by conventional brick manufacturers. There is already a British Standard for them, which means there’s no government investment required for development, guidance or standardisation.