Commercial Finance Specialists

The construction industry needs public sector support to get moving again, yet the government has abandoned it, says one union official.

There is a real danger of the construction industry's economic recovery stalling in the face of public spending cuts, it has been claimed, which has a knock-on effect for property investment and commercial development.

Any evidence showing that the industry is finally emerging from the recession must be taken with a pinch of salt in light of the reduced funding that is coming, says Alan Ritchie, general secretary of the Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians.

This evidence has been conflicting, with the Office for National Statistics reporting a 6.6 per cent rise in construction output during the second quarter of the year, while the Federation of Master Builders claims that construction workloads are still falling, although at a slower rate.

Whichever data is closer to the truth, the fact of the matter is that the industry which supports commercial development is still in need of public sector support, claims Mr Ritchie.

"The Con-Dem government has abandoned construction and the construction workers, at the time when support is most needed," he concluded.

Posted by Allan Flowers.