Responding to today’s statement from the Secretary of State for Transport on the High Speed Two (HS2) London-to-Birmingham rail project, Dame Fiona Reynolds, director-general of conservation organisation the National Trust, said, “We are pleased that Government has responded to local concerns over HS2 by promising a longer tunnel to protect the Chilterns Area of Outstanding National Beauty.

“However, we are disappointed that a tunnel at Hartwell House has not been included in the changes, given its international significance.

More than 210,000 signatures from people urging the Government to reconsider its controversial proposed changes to the planning system have been handed in by the National Trust on the final day of the consultation.

Published in July, the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) threatened, the Trust believes, to put short-term economic gain ahead of all other considerations, including impact on local communities and local green spaces.

The signatures were collected online, in local communities, and at National Trust properties throughout England.

Zoopla and the Digital Property Group are to merge, in a deal which will bring together several leading property-search websites, including Findaproperty.com, Zoopla.co.uk and Primelocation.com, creating, the two companies believe, a credible challenger to long-standing market leader Rightmove.

The Digital Property Group is owned by A&N Media, the consumer division of Daily Mail and General Trust.

Key benefits to househunters will include greater coverage of property listings and enhanced features, which will enable them to make better-informed decisions in the current difficult UK residential property market.

Knight Frank’s Prime Central London Index for June 2011 indicates that house prices in this part of the capital have risen 34% since March 2009 and are set to climb further.

According to the index, prices of prime London property rose 0.9% in June 2011, contributing to annual growth of 8.3%. They have increased by 34% since their post-credit-crunch low in March 2009, and are now at a record high, 2% up on their previous peak in March 2008. Demand is holding steady as new supply looks set to surge.

The UK residential property market’s pre-Christmas slowdown is now well underway. We look at the latest house-price indices and bring you some expert predictions for 2011.

All the major house-price surveys are currently reporting an underlying slowdown in prices, despite divergences caused by their different survey methods.

According to Nationwide’s latest House Price Index, prices edged down further in November. The average price of a home is now £163,398.

“The recent trend of modestly-falling house prices continued during November, with the price of a typical UK property declining by 0.3%, on a seasonally adjusted basis, between October and November," comments Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide's chief economist. "The three-month-on-three-month rate of change – a smoother measure of the recent price trend – rose from -1.5% to  -1.3%. This remains well above the deeply-negative rates of -5% to -6% that prevailed during the most severe phase of the downturn in 2008. The annual rate of change – which compares house prices to their level 12 months ago – fell from 1.4% to 0.4% and suggests that house prices are essentially unchanged from a year earlier.”

A new survey from Lloyds TSB has found that homes in some of England's traditional market towns command a premium of up to around £30,000 compared with homes in other parts of the same county.

The survey found that house prices in market towns are, on average, £29,319 (or 14%) higher than their county average. The average house price in market towns, at £231,163, is 7.1 times average gross annual earnings.

More than two-thirds of market towns have higher house prices than neighbouring towns, and 69% of market towns have a higher average house price than their county average. Beaconsfield, in Buckinghamshire, has the largest premium, with houses trading at 145% above the average house price in the county. The average house price in Beaconsfield is £736,585.

Eighteen other market towns have an average house price exceeding £300,000. All ten of the most-expensive market towns in England are in the south. Wetherby is the most expensive market town outside southern England, with an average house price of £311,140 – 99% above the West Yorkshire average.

Those looking for a cheaper market town should head for Ferryhill, in County Durham, which, with an average house price of £98,799 in August 2010, is England's least-expensive market town.

Comments Lloyds TSB‘s Martin Ellis, "Homes in market towns command a significant premium over their neighbouring towns, with the quality-of-life benefits often associated with living in such locations still proving popular among homebuyers. Market towns are often particularly attractive for those looking to move into more-idyllic surroundings without sacrificing many of the important amenities they currently enjoy."