construction, building, cis, certificates, vouchers, training
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Affordable housing cuts ‘another hammer blow’ for Highland building sector, says SBFThe industry body has also complained that, as competition for dwindling public sector contracts intensifies, many firms are already being forced to put in “suicidal tenders” to secure new work. It has suggested that, with further cuts on the horizon, such practices will push an increasing number of construction firms to the wall.The industry body has also complained that, as competition for dwindling public sector contracts intensifies, many firms are already being forced to put in “suicidal tenders” to secure new work. It has suggested that, with further cuts on the horizon, such practices will push an increasing number of construction firms to the wall. SBF Chief Executive Michael Levack described the cuts as “even worse than we had feared” and described them as “another hammer blow” for the Highland construction industry. He also suggested that the impact on employment and skills would be “acute”, with many Highland building firms under severe pressure and hundreds of apprentices unable to start or complete their training and forced to seek out an alternative career. A recent SBF Highland Association survey found that three quarters of member firms in the region described themselves as “heavily reliant” on the public sector. Traditionally viewed as a strength, the Highland industry’s strong reliance on public sector investment now makes it particularly vulnerable to threatened cuts in public sector capital investment, the SBF has warned. A growing crisis in the availability of affordable housing across the region will also accelerate a continuing outflux of workers from the region, further stifling its economic recovery, Mr. Levack added. The SBF Chief Executive also expressed concern that the effects of the cuts would be to create a skills shortage which would stoke up major cost inflation in the construction sector when the economy finally recovers. Mr. Levack was speaking following the announcement on Thursday by Highland Council that the funds available to the Council in 2011-12 to promote affordable housing developments would be reduced by almost one half by the Scottish Government. Mr. Levack commented: “We expected cuts but these are even worse than we had feared. This is yet another hammer blow for the Highland construction industry. “But this is not just disastrous for the building sector. It will do nothing to address a growing crisis in affordable housing provision in some of the most rural and remote parts of Scotland. Such a drastic cut in public funding will stifle the region’s economic recovery, forcing an increasing number of younger people to leave the Highlands altogether in search of a job and an affordable roof over their head. “For the construction industry in the Highlands, the impact will be to create an acute skills shortage that will stoke up major cost inflation when the recovery finally comes.” Commenting on the current state of the Highland construction industry, Mr Levack added: “I’m hearing many horror stories of Highland construction firms, desperate for work, forced to put in suicidal tenders to secure an ever-diminishing supply of public sector contracts. For some of these firms, this latest announcement may be the final nail in the coffin.” Willie Gray, Managing Director of Inverness-based construction company William Gray Construction Ltd, an active member of the SBF’s Highland Association, added: “If you crunch the numbers, the 45% cut in investment in affordable housing could mean almost 200 fewer new homes getting built in the Highland region next year – that’s a huge reduction not just for building firms such as my own but for all of the associated services and trades that rely on our industry for new work.” Mr. Levack concluded: “By anyone’s definition, this announcement constitutes a major crisis. Some of our member firms in the Highlands rely on the public sector for as much as 90% of their turnover. Three quarters of our members in the region describe themselves as ‘heavily reliant’ on the public sector for work. “So the impact of these cuts is quite clear. The Highland building industry shed 20% of its total employment in 2009. I can predict further significant business failures and substantial lay-offs as a direct result of this latest announcement. Hundreds of apprentices are already struggling to secure a placement. Many will now be forced to abandon a career in construction and seek employment elsewhere – with no new blood to replace them. That’s a legacy that will affect the industry and the wider economy for many years to come.”10th Mar 2010 by: Editor Select news from a previous month?
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Login
construction, building, cis, certificates, vouchers, training | website design by TTMG internet