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£10m boost to get people of diverse backgrounds into construction

CITB will be targeting more than 11,800 people to attract them into construction careers, as part of the Pathways Into Construction programme.

Construction output is expected to grow by 1.3% per year with 168,500 jobs being created by 2023 – challenging employers to recruit more people from diverse backgrounds.

Just 16% of construction employees are female, and 7% are from BAME backgrounds.

This has been due, in part, because construction employers have relied over the years on traditional recruitment methods (PDF. 903kb) such as word of mouth.

Pathways Into Construction will attract people from underrepresented groups over the next three years with CITB’s investment establishing recruitment pathways that employers can use in future.

This supports construction employers by helping them meet their workforce and skills needs. Pathways Into Construction will see a £10m investment in 270 colleges; construction employers and federations; infrastructure projects; councils; housing associations; armed forces organisations; charities; prisons; recruiters and training providers across England, Wales and Scotland to connect employers with people who traditionally don’t enter the industry.

CITB insight into critical training and employment issues underpins the Pathways Into Construction programme with investment aimed at key groups including young people not in education, training or work; women; long-term unemployed; service leavers who left the military at least 12 months ago; and full-time learners, focusing on CBE Diploma students.

In the West Midlands and East Anglia, Women Into Construction will assist 240 women with work-readiness support and job placements with 30 companies, half of which are to be small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).

Specifically in Wales, Creating Enterprise will also run work readiness courses and placements for more than 140 long-term unemployed people, including careers support plans beyond the project. Also in Wales, the Community Impact Initiative will provide nine renovation projects for 72 women to train on, plus CSCS card testing, along with vital on-site work experience to enable employment in the industry.

In Scotland, Sibbald will target 180 service leavers and young people not in education, training or employment within the North Glasgow area, in partnership with Glasgow Kelvin College, TIGERS Ltd, Keepmoat and Morgan Sindall.

Stephen Cole, CITB Head of Careers Strategy, said “With thousands of jobs being created in the coming years, Pathways Into Construction will demonstrate that we need to stop fishing in only half the pond and diversify the talent pool to meet future skills needs.

“We’ll explore the best routes, which employers can adopt in future, to bring under-represented groups into the industry, not only filling the skills gap but also supporting employers by recruiting domestic talent with Brexit on the horizon.”

Mark Reynolds, Mace Group CEO and Construction Leadership Council lead on skills, added “The funding awarded to the 16 projects will have a huge impact… It will help to ensure that everyone can access high-quality construction training and employers can find the right new people to deliver their projects.”

Other organisations leading Pathways Into Construction multi-partner projects include: Abbey Access Training; Balfour Beatty; Construction Youth Trust; Croydon Council, Doncaster College; EN:Able Futures; Ethos VO Ltd; the Home Builders Federation; Leeds Beckett University; Lendlease; Saint-Gobain; Sibbald Ltd; and YTKO.

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Hold off reverse charge VAT until 2020, urges industry

A letter from 15 trade federations has been sent to Sajid Javid MP, the chancellor of the Exchequer, asking for the 1 October 2019 introduction of domestic reverse charge VAT to be delayed until April 2020.

Reverse charge VAT means that the customer receiving the service will have to pay the VAT to HMRC instead of paying the supplier. The reverse charge applies through the supply chain where payments are required to be reported through the Construction Industry Scheme. Making the payment of VAT the responsibility of the customer rather than the supplier, there is no opportunity for the supplier to avoid paying VAT.

The National Federation of Builders, together with the other trade federations, has highlighted the effect the change will have on cash flow and administration costs for an industry already facing increased material and labour costs.

The guidance issued by HMRC was delivered late, is not clear and leaves some questions unanswered. A delay before introducing the charge would give the industry and government time to properly prepare the industry to understand the changes and update systems.

Richard Beresford, chief executive of the National Federation of Builders, said “For an industry facing lighter workloads, increasing pressure on cash flow and an already high rate of insolvency, reverse charge VAT could not have come at a worse time. By delaying the introduction of this measure, the industry will have more time to properly prepare and make their businesses more resilient, and more detailed guidance can be provided to ensure a smooth introduction.”

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Analysis indicates UK construction activity is moving out of the capital

The value of all construction contract awards in June 2019 was £5.2 billion based on a three-month rolling average, which is an increase of 5.5% on May. Regional analysis shows that the North West was the leading region for contract awards in June with a 36.6% value share.

Barbour ABI

The latest edition of the Economic & Construction Market Review from industry analysts Barbour ABI highlights levels of construction contract values awarded across Great Britain. The overall outlook for June contract awards increased by 5.5% on May 2019. The infrastructure sector accounted for 37.2% of total value of contract awards, due to the SPRS. Construction Programme at the Sellafield Site – valued at £1.5 billion, which boosted the North West’s project share.

Barbour ABI

London dominated in only two of the eight sectors for June 2019 – residential with a 26.2% share and commercial & retail with a 23.7% share of total contract awards. Construction activity has moved out of the capital for June, with a more even spread of contract awards across the UK. The East Midlands dominated the industrial sector, largely due to investment in warehousing and storage. The South West took the top spot for hotel, leisure & sport and Scotland took the lion’s share of projects in the medical & health and education sectors.

Commenting on the figures, Tom Hall, Chief Economist at Barbour ABI said “London has dominated project awards every month in 2019. However, for the first time this year, we see a shift in the spread of project awards across the country. Likewise, for the first time this year, we see infrastructure investment overtake the residential sector which has been the most active sector of construction for over 6 months.”

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Is permitted development a risk to health and wellbeing?

Councils across England are warning that homes created using permitted development rights are a potential threat to people’s health and wellbeing, with the most vulnerable people in society being more at risk.

A new report ‘Housing for a fairer society: The role of councils in ensuring stronger communities’ has found that:

  • Half of councils in England think permitted development housing could threaten people’s health and wellbeing
  • Half of councils in England think vulnerable people are disproportionately negatively affected by permitted development
  • Demand for affordable housing has remained unchanged for four consecutive years, with 59% of UK councils reporting ‘severe’ shortages
  • The findings, published in a report by APSE (Association for Public Service Excellence) and written by the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA), show that local authorities across
  • the UK are reporting ‘severe’ shortages of affordable housing for the fourth consecutive year, with only 2% claiming their need is ‘not substantial’

Further, three quarters of councils in England and Wales said they rely on developer contributions as their main source of income for delivering affordable housing, calling into question the efficacy of the government’s market-led approach to housing delivery.

Paul O’Brien, Chief Executive of APSE, said “It is ironic that as we celebrate a 100 years since the advent of council housing, and the ‘Addison Act’ standards on space and public amenities that were so innovative and important to the health and wellbeing of communities we are now witnessing a serious regression of these protections.

“Permitted developments are in danger of becoming the new slum housing of the 21st century, de facto permitting a dangerous slide into deregulated and ultimately damaging housing provision.”

Fiona Howie, Chief Executive of the TCPA added “Local authorities have a powerful role in shaping existing and new places that can enhance people’s health and wellbeing, but it is essential that they have the tools they need. This report highlights there is still much to be done to enable local authorities to deliver the affordable houses people so desperately need.”

Among the report’s recommendations is the suspension of the right to buy in England, the reinstatement of a definition of affordable housing which links affordability to income and the adoption of ‘community benefit clauses’ in planning policy to ensure that local authorities consistently maximise the wider benefits of the construction and development process.

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New Prime Minister must stimulate construction and house building

Construction leaders are calling on the new Prime Minister to intervene as construction output flatlines for the benefit of the wider economy as the latest statistics show that the sector is flatlining, says the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).

Commenting on the latest construction output statistics from the Office for National Statistics, which show that construction output growth in Great Britain was flat (0.0%) in the three-month on three-months to May 2019, Sarah McMonagle, Director of Communications at the FMB, said “Alarm bells will be ringing in the ears of the two candidates vying to be Prime Minister, with these latest stats showing that the construction sector is at a standstill. Whoever wins the race for PM, I want to see that person take decisive action in their first days in office by intervening to stimulate our waning sector, which is so vital to the health of the wider economy. Indeed, without it, our country’s house building aspirations will be impossible to deliver.”

“The poor performance of the construction sector over the past few months was driven partly by a drop in activity in the repair and maintenance sector. As you would expect, this part of the construction industry is particularly vulnerable to dips in consumer confidence, which the threat of a ‘no deal’ Brexit continues to perpetuate. There would be no better way to encourage homeowners to commission building projects in the second half of this year than by slashing VAT on housing repair, maintenance and improvement from 20 percent to 5 per cent. Furthermore, when we asked our members how the next PM could best prevent an economic downturn, almost 90 per cent felt this was the most effective way to achieve it.”

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), added “Boris the builder must build columns instead of writing them if he is to fix the housing crisis and restore the hope of home ownership to a generation. We will only reach the number of good quality homes we need, and at the rate we need them, if local house builders are freed up to build as many homes as the large house builders. We want to see Boris bring down the barriers facing construction SMEs, including those who repair and maintain our homes. If Boris is looking to cut taxes, then we suggest slashing VAT on home improvement works, as nine in ten builders believe this is the single best tool in Boris the builder’s toolkit to prevent an economic downturn post-Brexit. Bojo must restore the housing market’s mojo to ensure that Brexit Britain is built on strong foundations.”

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What do you know about Japanese knotweed?

It has halted developments across the country, caused untold damage to existing housing stock and rendered some properties completely unsellable. How much do you know about Japanese knotweed? As the sun coaxes this nuisance from the ground, Joe Bradbury of buildingspecifier.com investigates:

What is it?

Japanese knotweed is a non-native outdoor plant which grows at an alarming rate of up to 10cm per day. It proliferates in any type of soil and spreads incredibly easily, often leaving extensive damage in its wake.

By aggressively spreading its roots underground (up to 10 feet deep and 23 feet horizontally), it creates a serious threat to foundations of buildings and waste water management solutions.

If left untouched for a long period of time, the species can become very expensive to remove. It is estimated that total annual costs of Japanese knotweed damage, control and removal to the British economy £166 million. Defra’s Review of Non-native Species Policy states that a national eradication programme would be prohibitively expensive at £1.56 billion.

Needless to say, it is listed by the World Conservation Union as one of the world’s worst invasive species and also classed as “controlled waste” in Britain under part 2 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This means that all traces of knotweed need to be disposed of at licensed landfill sites only.

What does it look like?

Could you identify Japanese knotweed if you found it on your property? Because a study undertaken by online garden shop GardeningExpress.co.uk found that only 44% of customers were actually able to identify the invasive plant, and 56% identified the weed as a plant they would actually welcome in their gardens.
Here are some of the easiest ways of identifying knotweed by sight:

  • The plant is a lush green colour
  • Its leaves are shovel shaped
  • The stem looks similar to that of the bamboo plant
  • Between September and October it produces white flowers
  • It grows at an accelerated pace

What to do if you find Japanese knotweed

If you think that you have Japanese knotweed on your land you need to do something about it as soon as possible, to prevent further risk to your property and those close by.

The first thing you need to do is to alert a professional. DO NOT attempt to remove it from the ground yourself; this will merely serve to disperse its stem fragments and cause it to spread even further.

There are three main methods of getting rid of the weed. These can be split into three areas:

Non-chemical control

It is possible (but not always feasible) to dig out Japanese knotweed, but due to the depth of the roots, regrowth often reoccurs regardless. This method also creates problems with disposal, due to the waste needing to be disposed of at a licensed landfill site only. Alternatively, it can be destroyed on site by burning the waste, but only after it has competently dried out.

Biological control

A plant sucker (psyllid) is being released in the UK as a biological control for Japanese knotweed. It is currently only being released at a handful of trial sites and is not available to gardeners. However, if successful it will be released more widely and will become widespread in Britain over the next five to ten years by natural spread.

Chemical control

Perhaps the most effective treatment method is to use special weed killers to keep the plant at bay. Often it takes a lot longer this way (up to three seasons),but can produce great results in the long run. Injecting glyphosate herbicide into the stems of the plant can kill the plant completely with no impact on the surrounding vegetation, landscape or wildlife.

In summary

Japanese knotweed is a major issue for British builders. It is in everybody’s interest to be vigilant towards this invasive plant and prioritise the control and removal of it from our properties altogether – particularly those with surrounding parkland and riverbanks from where the infestations usually originate and spread from in the first place.

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How can the construction industry reduce its plastic usage?

To celebrate ‘Plastic Free July’, Insulation Express has uncovered five ways on buildingspecifier.com that the construction industry can lessen its plastic consumption on a day-to-day basis:

Every year the UK uses over 5 million tonnes of plastic – that’s about 15 times as heavy as the Empire State Building. But did you know the construction industry accounts for a quarter (23%) of the plastic consumed in the UK? The construction industry is still heavily reliant on plastic, for its cheapness, durability and water-resistance making it the second largest consumer of plastic in the UK.

However, what makes plastic so useful for construction is also part of its demise. The resilience of plastic means it can take up to 1000 years to decompose, while it degrades it contaminates our soils and oceans with the release of fossil fuels and greenhouse gases. So, how can the industry lessen its plastic footprint?

The most common sources of plastic waste in construction

When plastic is used in a permanent form, it can be vital as a building material. However, when the material is single-use plastic, this becomes a bigger problem, that’s wasteful and can be easily avoided. These are the most common sources of plastic waste in construction:

  • Plastic packaging (which accounts for 25% of packaging waste in construction).
  • Unused materials from over ordering and off-cuts.
  • Improper storage and handling.
  • Over-specified project design.
  • Workforce food packaging and utensils.

Annually, 50,000 tonnes of plastic packaging waste is produced by the UK’s construction industry

It’s believed the construction industry has an effective management of plastic waste, but the picture is not as transparent. The British construction industry generates 50,000 tonnes of plastic packaging waste per year – that’s four times the weight of The Brooklyn Bridge. Much of that plastic waste is incinerated, adding toxic fumes to the air we breathe. Other large amounts of plastic are placed in mixed waste skips which is impossible to recycle, because they can’t be identified, or they are contaminated with other materials. This has helped to contribute to 5 trillion micro-plastic particles floating in oceans, which we then consume through water or from fish.

40% of plastic waste from construction in the UK is sent to landfill

It’s estimated that large quantities of plastic leave construction sites in mixed waste skips – sending 40% (20,000 tonnes) of plastic to landfill, a weight that is twice as heavy as The Eiffel Tower.

On the other end of the scale, Germany recovers and recycles a huge proportion of the plastic waste created in construction. In total, Germany generates 201.8 million tonnes of waste in construction and demolition, but around 90% of that is recycled, and around 80% of the plastic waste is recycled.

plastic

How construction can reduce plastic packaging waste in construction

Research reveals that a huge third of single-use packaging leaving sites is single-use packaging. Shockingly, only 2-4% of this is recycled. The rest is diverted to landfill, fly-tipped, or burnt. It is clear that the amount of plastic being sent to landfill is not sustainable for either the environment or construction.

Most of the industry realises something needs to change, with 95% of construction professionals admitting that the industry needs to reduce plastic use. But, how can this be achieved?

  • A huge proportion of packaging thrown away can often be reused. You can talk with your supplier to see if they can reduce the packaging, or if they’re able to take back the packaging to recycle.
  • It may be more beneficial to order in bulk or larger packs, as this will cut the volume of packaging per item.
  • You could use reusable plastic boxes to place and protect materials in. These boxes can then be returned to the supplier.
  • Use large sheets of plastic sheeting that arrived as wrapping for use on site as weather protection.
  • For the plastic packaging that can’t be recycled, send it to a licensed Waste Management Contractor. They are best placed to decide their destination.

Not only does a reduction in packaging waste help the environment, it can also help your business too – financially. One contractor, Risby Homes, saved £13,000 on a 25-home development project, simply by reducing, reusing and recycling their plastic waste.

Construction companies can make simple changes that save money by reducing packaging waste, such as:

  • Cutting costs by reusing packaging where possible.
  • Time spent on handling waste, such as clearing and collecting waste, can be lengthy and pricey. Especially considering this cost can be easily cut by reducing packaging.
  • Slashing the costs of skip hire and transport costs, as well as reducing the ever-increasing fees of landfill sites and tax.

The Innovative Ways Plastic is Being Recycled Across Construction

How can construction reduce and recycle the plastic in construction? Some companies in the industry are even creating decking from recycled plastic, which can save 1000 plastic bottles from landfill in a single metre of decking. That means in just a small sized decking 3,600 plastic bottles could be diverted from landfill.

But it doesn’t just stop there, Insulation Express has discovered the most innovative ways construction are reusing waste materials.

Nappy Roofing – More than half a million tonnes of waste is created in Britain from disposable nappies, and with each one taking around 500 years to decompose this is a concerning problem. But, instead of letting the waste decompose, you could be looking at roofing your house with them. A company have found a way to turn waste nappies into roof tiles, which could save 110,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year.

Plastic Roads – Roads are traditionally made from asphalt which uses stone and gravel to form the infrastructure. However, future roads could be made from used plastic – dubbed plasphalt. Amazingly, as well as a way of recycling plastic, this method of forming pavements is also stronger than asphalt and less expensive.

Plastic Concrete – Researchers from Bath University have found an ingenious way to save sand and reuse plastic waste. The scientists have discovered that 10% of the sand in concrete can be replaced with plastic waste. Concrete requires 30% of sand, which strips our beaches and riverbeds. Just replacing 10% of it can save over 800 million tonnes of sand.

What Does the Future Hold for Plastic in Construction?

Plastic still has a place in construction; it’s durable, waterproof and lasts long. Although plastic is polluting our environment, it doesn’t have to be the enemy. Indeed, there are ways for plastic to be part of the solution, such as recycling plastic into other building materials. In the future we may see a massive take up of alternatives to plastic in construction, some of these are already being developed and trialled. But for the average construction professional, you can reduce plastic use by talking to your supplier, educating your workforce and setting a good example to employees.

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MMC: a solution for modern times

Our industry needs to change. To do this, we must cast a critical eye over our own behaviour and acknowledge our shortcomings; something many feel understandably hesitant to do. The bad news is that the UK construction industry is currently responsible for 45% of total UK carbon emissions, 32% of all landfill waste and is responsible for more water pollution incidents than any other industry. The good news is that we have the knowledge, skills and technology to facilitate real change in the world, when we put our minds to it. Offsite construction is the clearly catalyst. It’s time to stop quietly knowing it and start being proud bastions of our trade… before it is too late. Buildingspecifier.com Editor Joe Bradbury discusses:

Material usage

One of the key factors that will either seal our reputation as innovators or sully it indefinitely is the materials we use and how we choose to use them. With an unprecedented shortage of housing and schools in this country (coupled with a thriving private sector), it is clear to see that despite what construction industry doomsayers print, the UK has a voracious appetite for buildings that isn’t going away any time soon.

The construction industry is the largest consumer of natural resources in the UK today; a stark point that highlights just how high up on the agenda reconsideration of our building practices should be. The impact of our materials usage on the environment in of itself is staggering; a recent report by Willmott Dixon Group suggested that the construction industry alone is accountable for around 45-50% of global energy usage, nearly 50% of worldwide water usage, and around 60% of the total usage of raw materials.

Construction will always eat up a lot of resources by its very nature, but modular construction is taking steps to address this through combining modern building techniques to reduce cost and time with a moral sense of duty to minimise the negative effects on our environment.

The benefits of adopting more considerate ways to use materials are far-reaching. Take FSC-approved timber as just one of many examples; manufacturers who use forest products that are FSC approved can do so with confidence, safe in the knowledge that they are helping to ensure our forests are alive and well for generations to come. But the benefits are also far more immediate and closer to home than that; wood is a natural, renewable material, used often in modular building. It offsets our carbon footprint and offers significant thermal efficiency, keeping energy bills low.

For the four million people in Britain living in fuel poverty today, building more energy efficient homes using modern methods of construction is urgent. Interestingly, if housing targets were met through timber-frame construction alone, new build homes in the UK would serve as carbon ‘banks’, capturing and storing nearly 4 million tonnes of CO2 every year… unfeasible I know, but food for thought!

Reducing waste

According to ‘The Waste and Resources Action Programme’, offsite construction can generate up to 90% less waste than traditional onsite building methods. This is largely because a factory is a much more controlled environment than a traditional building site – with far fewer variables. Within the four walls of a purpose built factory we can continue to learn how best to use (and more importantly, re-use) resources and reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill; something which is financially unproductive, unpopular, unsightly and unhealthy for our planet.

Another reason for offsite methods generating less waste is due to the fact that modular construction offers a greater degree of reusability; buildings can often be disassembled and moved to another site entirely if necessary. They can be shifted and repurposed when required. However, should a modular building find itself no longer fit for requirement as it stands, many of its components can be salvaged and re-used in another project, reducing the need for fresh new materials in each new build. This reduction in materials usage protects depleting stock of resources whilst simultaneously lowering waste.

Environmentally conscious

Offsite construction is far less energy intensive than traditional building methods. The carbon footprint left by the many construction vehicles and machinery on the site of a traditional construction project alone is considerably larger than that of modular construction. Put simply, fewer vehicles involved and less time spent on site results in less greenhouse gases being released into our environment.

Construction pollutes our world in more ways than one, and noise pollution has always been a serious problem on building sites throughout the country. There’s no getting away from it, the construction industry has a huge impact on all our lives, with most construction work taking place in sensitive locations. But there are things we can do to soften that impact. If all construction sites and companies presented an image of competent management, innovation, efficiency, awareness of environmental issues and above all neighbourliness, then they would become a positive advertisement, not just for themselves but for our industry as a whole. Due to being built away from the construction site, modern methods of construction such as offsite and modular are a great way to reduce and control noise levels, causing less disruption to the environment and the people around it.

In summary

The positive effects of modular construction on our environment cannot be understated and implementing it into our daily lives as an industry needs to happen fast. Widespread adoption coupled with a continuing focus on eco-friendly materials can only increase those benefits.

In the past, fines for pollution have been relatively low and environmental regulations notoriously slack, and it could have been perceived as cheaper (and easier) to pollute rather than take adequate steps to prevent pollution. Thankfully, this situation is now changing. Legal enforcement of environmental regulations expensive and can irreversibly damage the reputation of a firm. This is something that should be avoided at all costs.

With the UK Environment Agency and other government bodies putting increasing pressure on construction companies to reduce pollution and conform to environmental regulations, it is clear to see that change is imminent – the future is coming and we can either chase it or make it our own. Expect modular construction to take an even larger share of the construction industry, for awareness of its benefits to increase even further over time and stand at the forefront of that change.

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Government urged to delay VAT changes to avoid disruption

The Government has not properly prepared the construction industry for major VAT changes coming in October and needs to delay their implementation to avoid chaos, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has said in a letter to the Financial Secretary to the Treasury.

New data published by the FMB shows that:

  • Over two-thirds of construction SMEs (69%) have not even heard of reverse charge VAT; and
  • Of those who have, more than two-thirds (67%) have not prepared for the changes

This comes after HMRC published guidance on reverse charge VAT just four months before the changes were due to come into place. This has been criticised for being inaccessible to most in the industry and is even contradictory in places. HMRC was also due to have a dedicated website and marketing campaign for the changes to help prepare the hundreds of thousands construction companies who will be impacted by the changes.

Reverse charge VAT will have a serious impact on cash flow, as well as being a significant administrative burden, fundamentally changing the way construction companies invoice their clients and pay their taxes to HMRC.

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said “Construction companies are already struggling with Brexit uncertainty, sky-rocketing material price rises and skill shortages and reverse charge VAT is yet another thing for them to deal with. What makes things worse is that HMRC has failed to deliver on its promise to help the industry to prepare. The guidance is not user-friendly and even tax experts are scratching their heads over it.”

“It’s therefore not surprising that the vast majority of construction SMEs are not aware of the impending changes, despite widespread promotion by the FMB. Small business owners are busy people and clearly they don’t have time to read everything we send them. For those who are aware, they haven’t had a chance to change their systems yet as they were waiting for guidance to be published that has only just emerged. That’s why we are calling on the Government to delay the changes by another six months and to use the extra time to improve the guidance and work with us to undertake a more intensive communications campaign. HMRC should also consider holding workshops across the country to explain the changes.”

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What a ‘no-deal’ Brexit means for builders

A ‘no deal’ Brexit could result in soaring material prices and lower workloads and enquiries, according to the latest research from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).

When asked about the impact of a ‘no deal’ Brexit: Key results from the research include:

  • Over half (53%) say it would result in higher material prices;
  • Just under a third (29%) say it will lead to lower workloads and enquiries;
  • Just over a quarter (26%) say it would result in less access to skilled workers.

When asked how best the new PM could prevent an economic downturn later this year, the top five interventions cited by construction SMEs were the following:

  1. Reduce VAT on repair, maintenance and improvement (87%);
  2. Make more money available through Government funding schemes aimed at SME house builders, such as the Home Building Fund (36%);
  3. Reform the Apprenticeship Levy so more SMEs can train apprentices (36%);
  4. Invest funds in local authority planning departments to speed up the planning process (30%);
  5. Embark upon a national programme of social house building (25%).

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said “As the Conservative leadership contest rumbles on, construction SMEs are worried about the potential impact of a ‘no deal’ Brexit, which would have immediate and potentially disastrous consequences for the construction industry. Material prices are the biggest cause for concern – widely-used building materials such as timber are largely imported and any disruption to that would lead to soaring prices and delays to construction projects. More broadly, a significant proportion of construction SMEs think that a ‘no deal’ Brexit would result in lower workloads and enquiries as confidence in the economy might wobble as people abandon plans for new projects until the UK is on a steadier footing.”

“However, the next PM has it in his gift to guard against any potential economic downturn by stimulating activity in construction and house building as soon as he gets the keys to No.10. Construction SMEs believe that the best way to do this would be to slash VAT on housing, renovation and repair work from 20 per cent to 5 per cent, which would help tempt homeowners to finally commission the home improvement projects they’ve been putting off due to Brexit-related uncertainty. This would give a much-needed boost to the construction sector and the wider economy. The next PM should also make more money available to SME house builders through government funding schemes and stimulate apprenticeship training through fundamental reforms to the Apprenticeship Levy. Once elected, the new PM has a responsibility to steady the economy. There’s no better way to do that than investing in construction and house building, which would boost economy.”

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