Here’s a nice statement of confidence in these difficult times. National law firm Mills & Reeve has moved into prestigious new headquarters in Cambridge, following the completion of a £2.45m office fit-out. Botanic House, a seven-storey office development, stands between the city’s historic core and the railway station.

The 60,000 sq ft lens-shaped property, designed by Formation Architects, is named after Cambridge University’s Botanic Garden, which it overlooks. The commercial development is the first office scheme speculatively developed in Cambridge city centre for more than 20 years.

It is a long time since the snooty city authorities turned down IBM’s proposal to build a research centre as too grubbily commercial. (The computer giant went to Zurich instead – where its boffins won a string of Nobel prizes.)