Founder of Open ECX, Matthew Jones, discusses the upcoming Spring Budget, and what he hopes it will bring for the construction industry
On March 6th, the UK Government unveiled its monumental £360m plan to become a ‘tech superpower’ by 2030, boosting investment and attracting talent to the UK. Headed up by the newly established Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the ambitious framework follows the lead of countries such as Germany and France, which have recently invested billions of Euros into the deeptech and climate tech sectors.
With the Spring Budget due, can the construction industry hope to see the same level of Government commitment? I’d hope to see the wants and the needs of the construction industry addressed, particularly in the following areas.
The Spring Budget should continue investment in the North of England
Results from the second round of the Levelling Up Fund were revealed in January 2023, with roughly a quarter of successful applicants located in Yorkshire, the North East and the North West and awarded their share of £2.1bn.
However, there is still much room for improvement. It’s imperative that we see a rejuvenated effort from the Government to invest in skills training in the North’s construction sector.
Unfortunately, 69% of construction managers in the North West find it difficult to find suitable candidates for job roles. In the North East, this figure rises to 71%.
While there has been a larger financial commitment to the North, I’d like to see more effort and funds spent on training and skills in construction and the associated sectors in an effort to bridge the skills gap, such as continued support for Construction Apprenticeships.
These allow young people to gain the necessary qualifications to further their growth and career development, supporting and rewarding innovation and creativity in the sector.
Furthermore, as the son of a civil engineer and a proud Lancastrian, I’d love to see the delivery of a major East West infrastructure programme to help further stimulate growth in the North. Being able to swiftly move between the region’s cities will help create new business opportunities and jobs, and ultimately fuel the next wave of economic growth.
Prompt payment measures
Individuals and industries across the UK are battling the impact of rising costs and supply chain challenges and the construction sector is no different.
In 2021, the Government strengthened their stance on the Prompt Payment Code by slashing the requirement payment time to small businesses to 30 days. However, to properly combat this and prevent businesses from going into liquidation because of late payments, the Government must incentivise the implementation of prompt payment measures.
One way to ensure that payments are made on time is for companies to introduce technology to expedite the process. Recent research by Open ECX has shown that 77% of businesses saved between £10k – £100k after implementing eTrading, which can make a significant difference in the current climate.
Incentivisation of sustainability
In late 2022, the Government laid out plans to support sustainable action in the built environment by improving reporting on embodied carbon in buildings and infrastructure. Subsequently, the sector was left with no timeline or details stating when this would come into action.
If the UK Government is to fulfil its Net Zero goals by 2050, the Spring Budget should involve plans to encourage the adoption of sustainability initiatives within the construction sector. Rewarding companies which actively commit to reducing their carbon outputs is the only way we are going to see genuinely positive environmental change.
Of course, last year’s Spring Budget, left a lot to be desired amongst construction professionals, from the lack of consumer support when it came to rising bills, to more action required to increase energy efficiency in housebuilding.
This year, we can only hope that more of our industry’s needs are met if the construction industry is to experience continued, successful growth.
