Past RIBA president Sunand Prasad has emerged as the favourite “named” candidate to succeed shamed philosopher Roger Scruton, who was sacked as chair of the government’s Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission earlier this month, according to a BD survey.

However, respondents to our straw poll also questioned the merits of continuing with the consistently controversial panel set up last year to report on ways to “tackle the challenge of poor quality design and build of homes and places” and increase public support for new development.

Scruton was ignominiously ejected from the commission by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government after making controversial comments on antisemitism and Islamophobia in a magazine interview.