Mr John Bruder, property director of Treasury Holdings, has been elected president of the Society of Chartered Surveyors. Referring last night to the slowdown in the property market, he told society members it was important to note that growth continues - though at more modest rates.

This moderation is to be welcomed, as previous growth rates were both destabilising and unsustainable. However, Mr Bruder refuted any suggestion that this slowdown would develop into a recession in the construction and property industries.

In his view there was "no reason why this should be the case".

Having to manage exponential growth in the industry over the past number of years, the challenge for surveyors now was to manage the slowdown so that more modest growth rates could be maintained in the medium term, he stressed.