I must congratulate you on the publication of the debate between Colin Harding and Rab Bennetts. I wish to raise one issue and make one objection.

From inception to the facilities management of a project, a client must be seeking the most competent person(s) to project manage and lead the scheme. Within all professions there are people qualified to project manage. On occasions may even come from outside built environment disciplines.

My objection: the final paragraph from Rab Bennetts implies that only architects have social and cultural responsibilities. All chartered professionals, whether architects, or builders, have made a professional commitment based on their membership of a chartered professional institution to work for the public benefit. All are obliged to observe codes of conduct and ethics.

Long gone are the days where "professionals" could isolate themselves from commercial pressure. We need to develop a much better understanding of how to practise our professions driven by a public interest agenda, in a modern competitive (and sustainable) environment.

Michael Brown, deputy chief executive, Chartered Institute of 好色先生TV

Topics