According to the latest survey the construction sector in Northern Ireland lags significantly behind the rest of the UK…
A lack of infrastructure activity in Northern Ireland is a “key source of concern” and could be a reason why the nation is lagging behind its UK counterparts.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) and Tughans’ Construction Market Survey examined the first three months of the year. It found in terms of overall workload, employment, and profit margins the north was the worst performing region.
Worryingly, not one respondent in the country reported any growth in infrastructure workloads, which made it the only part of the UK to remain stagnant.
One area that did see activity was private housebuilding, which saw a net balance of +26 per cent of surveyors reporting higher levels of activity during the quarter.
Rics’ construction spokesman in the north Jim Sammon said: “On the positive side, the latest survey points to overall growth in activity. But unfortunately it is relatively weak growth and it is coming off a very low base.
“The main concern is the ongoing lack of infrastructure activity, with no growth in infrastructure workloads reported for the tenth consecutive quarter.
“The reality is that Northern Ireland simply cannot achieve the kind of economic growth that we want without investing significantly in our infrastructure. So we need to see a step-change in Northern Ireland’s approach to infrastructure investment.”
In response, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) called upon the next Stormont executive to take action to support construction “or risk creating a ‘lost generation’ of builders”.
Northern Ireland director Gavin McGuire said: “A year ago, in the build up to the general election, we called on Northern Ireland’s politicians to set out a clear strategy for tackling the housing crisis and improving access to finance, and to provide much-needed stimulus to the construction sector.
“Sadly, a year on, indecision and a culture of short termism continue to sag on industry confidence. If this climate prevails, the exodus of Northern Irish businesses and tradespeople to other parts of the UK will continue.
“There’s a very real risk of doing permanent damage to our skills base.”