what Iacchus says really only applies to London, and only certain parts of it which are / were undergoing major redevelopment.
There are a lot of warehouses dating back from the 1940s/50s particularly in the vicinity of the Thames, Lea and Grand Union Canal, which aren’t suitable for modern business/industry and are in a state of dereliction, so neither the landowners nor the Met care too much what happens to them.
However I’ve seen London crews make the mistake of partying a “between lets” building – within about an hour 16 metpol TSG (riot van) units turned up and cleared everyone out. They didn’t have to use major force or riot gear/shields, just the sheer number of cops; it was like something out of a American movie!
in the provinces, unfortunately it has become common for empty but between lets buildings to be targeted, and trashing these is definitely stupid. it does appear in some areas that some estate managers actually sacrifice the oldest buildings its still pointless to vandalise them as it makes it harder for the next crews.
anyway, especially with the credit crunch there often isn’t such a thing as an “abandoned building”. If its still standing and can be used for anything some attempt will be made to sell it – if not it is knocked down very quickly so the land can be re-used. There is a lot more security on any void (empty) building these days and it will actually get harsher rather than better with the recession as estate owners aren’t daft and realise that if ravers don’t rinse the buildings others will for metal and materials, so even if a building is destined to be knocked down the demolition contractors want it secured so they can get the tat…
Anyway land and buildings are still expensive and in demand particularly in East Anglia as its near a lot of transport routes, plus most industrial units here are way too near to residential areas, many being built in the times when fewer people had cars and they used to walk or cycle to their place of work…
