Urgent Action needed on Scottish Infrastructure

The latest findings of CECA’s quarterly CECA (Great Britain) 2018 Q2 has found that while across Great Britain as a whole, workloads have improved and prospects are positive, this is in sharp contrast to the trends here in Scotland.

In the CECA (Scotland) Workload Trends Survey for 2018 Q2, Scottish civils contractors report that workloads declined for a third consecutive quarter, according to one third of firms, on balance – tipping the sector into recession.

In Scotland, 48 per cent of firms, on balance, reported that orders had decreased in Q2, the lowest in nearly eight years. 20 per cent of Scottish firms, on balance, expected workloads to fall over the next year and 26 per cent, on balance anticipated a decline in orders.

Commenting, Chief Executive of CECA Scotland Grahame Barn said:

“While these results are not unexpected, they make grim reading for Scottish contractors, and the industry as a whole. Urgent action must now be taken by governments in both Holyrood and Westminster to arrest this alarming slide in activity in the Scottish civils market.

“The infrastructure sector creates jobs and acts as a driver of growth in the economy, and it is positive that it is doing just that in Great Britain as a whole. More must be done to ensure the sector in Scotland isn’t damaged by continuing falls in activity.

“Scotland’s businesses and communities rely on the infrastructure our members deliver, and must not be short-changed on the economic growth a thriving industry can bring.”