According to a recent study, the UK's construction industry will not recover from the recession easily. In fact, it is believed that the industry will only return to its pre-recession peak level of output by 2022.
In 2012, 60,000 jobs in the sector were lost and output fell 9%, in large because of the public spending cuts. Overall, public sector construction fell 20% in 2012 whilst infrastructure fell 15%, commercial construction 10% and private housing 5%. This is despite a radical overhaul of the planning system which was partially aimed to help the construction industry by simplifying the planning system.
Judy Lowe, deputy director of the CITB-ConstructionSkills, said "construction found itself at the heart of a perfect storm in 2012." She added that the sector has been "hit hard by a combination of public sector spending cuts and a lack of investment in the private sector."
The study claimed that Greater London would be the only bright spot in the next five years, with most parts of the country continuing to suffer contraction. Employment in construction is expected to pick up in the East of England and in Greater London, but nowhere else.
Steve Murphy, the general secretary of Ucatt, said, "These latest figures make grim but all too predictable reading. The construction industry is struggling as a direct result of Government policies. The Government, the largest client in the construction industry, has cut spending at a time when the private sector has been unable to fill that gap. This has been catastrophic for construction workers who have needlessly lost their jobs."
