Firms report 'sharp fall' in enquiries in second quarter

Construction will decline further in the second half of 2010, according to the industry’s latest trade survey.

The Construction Trade Survey, published today, found a “significant fall” in orders during the second quarter of 2010, as well as a “sharp fall” in enquiries. The report, which brings together surveys of civil engineers, product manufacturers, small builders, specialists and major contractors, showed that, although work picked up in the second quarter of this year, there is a lack of work in the pipeline.

Noble Francis, economics director at the Construction Products Association, said: “Over the next few years, construction is braced for a fall in public sector investment and will increasingly need to look to the private sector for growth. It is critical that capital investment is focused on those areas, such as transport, energy, and other key infrastructure projects, that will do most to stimulate the wider economic recovery.”

Julia Evans, chief executive of the National Federation of Builders, added: “Factors such as flat mortgage lending, lower levels of lending to construction companies and a planning system in transition put any tentative signs of growth at risk. Given the significant contribution that construction made to the overall growth in UK GDP in the second quarter of 2010, we can only hope the government takes into account the resulting benefit to the wider economy of a sustained, and sustainable, level of investment in construction when it makes further decisions on spending.”