Last month the most important stories, in my opinion, were from the international sector, this month it’s decidedly British. The UK government has changed the regulations relating to CHAPS, the system that allows money from house sales to be transferred. It probably means porters are going to be working longer hours from this summer. The new regulations will, no doubt, be popular with customers, but not so within the trade I suspect. Take a look at page 30 for all the details. I will be interested to hear your comments about how you think it will affect your business.

If you are in the UK you might also like to take a look at the Supreme Court ruling on page 34. If you are a landlord or a tenant (many movers are both) you should take heed of the decision. It could save you rather a lot of cash one way or the other.

There are two things I particularly like about editing a magazine: it gives me the opportunity to say thank you to people who have made a difference in the industry; and it allows me to give a gentle leg up to newcomers. This month I have been able to do both. Graham Puddephatt has returned to the insurance side of the industry after a short break and my friend Albert Lopez has left the company in Dubai that he was with for decades and set out on his own. Starting your own business always takes courage and hard work. I wish them both good fortune and a little luck to help them on their way.

On the other side of the coin it was a great pleasure to have the opportunity of interviewing Colin Gordon for you. Colin has decided to retire from the business after around half a century of toil. In future he will be putting his musical talents to the test and taking life a little easier. Please read his story on page 24. Whenever someone like Colin steps down from the front line the industry becomes a little weaker. Let’s hope there are a few youngsters with his commitment to take up the slack.

Finally, it remains for me to wish you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2016. As the world around us seems to become increasingly precarious, may I also add my hope that this year will be a safe one for us all as well.