Have you written to your MP urging him or her to support the All-Party Construction Skills and Training Group's Early Day Motion 1941 in the House of Commons? The Motion aims to put pressure on the DTI to stop stalling and finally do something about security of payment in the construction industry .

The ECA and other members of the SEC Group are demanding that the DTI amends the Construction Act to ensure that there is a statutory mechanism for defining the amount to be paid, that all conditional payment provisions are outlawed and that progress payments start right from the beginning of the project. The SEC Group also wants to see the Act provide effective protection for firms in the supply chain from upstream insolvencies.

The sad demise of well-established m&e contractor RTT Group shows just how hard payment problems are still hitting specialist contractors. RTT's bank called in the receivers after the contractor was left nearly £1 million out of pocket on a PFI hospital scheme. As the SEC Group so aptly puts it: "Unless the necessary changes are made to legislation, the construction industry will continue to be bedevilled by payment delays and abuse."

Source

Electrical and Mechanical Contractor