GROWTH in Scotland’s construction sector accelerated in the latest quarter as businesses became “fed up” with the Brexit delay, according to new figures.
The Q2 2019 RICS Construction and Infrastructure Market Survey also shows workload and employment expectations are gathering pace for the year ahead.
Over a fifth more respondents in Scotland reported an increase in construction workloads, up from a +2% net balance in Q1.
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Workloads in public housing grew at the fastest pace, with a net balance of 52% more respondents reporting an increase in activity – up from -30% in Q1.
This was closely followed by growth in private housing workloads.
Jeffrey Matsu, RICS senior economist, said: “Three years on and the long, unrelenting shadow of Brexit uncertainty is testing the mettle of the construction industry.
“After a prolonged period of delays and underinvestment, businesses now appear to be fed up and are proceeding cautiously with new hiring and intentions to invest.
“With the range of possible outcomes related to Brexit as wide as ever, we expect to see continued volatility in the construction output data, but in the meanwhile foresee workload activity stabilising.”
Workloads in the infrastructure sector improved slightly in Q2 and there was also modest growth in commercial and public non-housing activity.
Business inquiries for new projects or contracts in Scotland continued to grow this quarter.
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There were 27% more respondents who reported an increase rather than a fall over the past three months – from 7% in Q1.
Capacity continues to hold back potential activity, with 30% more surveyors across Scotland having to increase headcount in the past three months to support new work, despite the ongoing recruitment challenges.
It was announced last week that the Scottish construction sector is to receive a £5.4 million funding injection for training and retraining more skilled workers to help the industry face the challenges of the future.
The money will be invested in three hubs through a programme called Onsite Experience with a brief to expand opportunities for employment through onsite experience in mostly rural areas.
The investment will build on the experience of the Construction Skills Fund (CSF) in England, and represents a historic investment in training a site-ready workforce for construction employers.
CITB’s Construction Skills Network report shows that construction requires 168,500 skilled people to enter the industry over the next five years, including 13,950 in Scotland, where the sector is forecast to grow by 0.5%.
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