‘Over the last 12 years I have had an incredibly happy and fulfilling time looking after the interests of the property sector. I know that the BPF has been able to change for the better the way our industry is perceived within the legislative, planning, tax and regulatory landscape in which we operate,’ she said.
‘I have enjoyed the support and friendship of a great list of Presidents and also the dedication and hard work of a highly focused and positive executive team. After dedicating 12 years of work through three broad property cycles to the BPF, the time is right for me to move on and make way for a new generation of leadership,’ she added.
David Marks, current president of the BPF, said she has been a great leader of the Federation. ‘We will be sorry to see her go, but understand entirely her wish to pursue her other many and varied interests,’ he explained.
‘She has achieved a tremendous amount for our industry and in particular has totally transformed the way in which the sector is regarded by those in government and other stakeholder bodies. Under her leadership the BPF played a crucial role in introducing REITs to the UK property industry and in helping to inform significant changes to the planning system,’ he pointed out.
‘Liz's intelligent and persistent lobbying on behalf of the BPF and its wider membership has also greatly increased the awareness of how targeted investment by the private sector in a wide range of asset types and regions can actually increase the overall tax base of Government through the vibrant regeneration of cities, as opposed to simply and crudely increasing the taxation of the existing stock of depreciating assets,’ he added.
The BPF's mandate to represent the interests of investors in the commercial sector is considered to be wider and more complex today than at any time in its 50 year history. Issues, trends and policies that the BPF is helping to inform include a myriad of topics within the broad areas of regeneration, planning, finance, tax, the improving relationships between property owners and their occupiers, infrastructure and sustainability.
The Board of the BPF has commenced the search for a new chief executive. Given the wide ranging number of initiatives and topics that the BPF is currently involved in, at various levels of public policy, it is expected that Liz will continue to lead the BPF until a successor is identified and in place, at some point in the autumn of 2014.
