Civils contractors today welcomed the publication of two key documents setting out projected investment of nearly £650 billion in the UK’s infrastructure over the rest of the decade.
The Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) has published the National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline 2021 and Transforming Infrastructure Performance: Roadmap to 2030, both of which set out the planned pipeline of infrastructure investment and for the first time sets out the annual average workforce requirement to deliver it.
Commenting, Chief Executive of the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) Alasdair Reisner said: “Today’s publications set out the radical and ambitious pipeline of work that will enable CECA members to plan for the future, boosting industry confidence and enabling companies to structure the workforce accordingly.
“The IPA has projected that 425,000 jobs will be supported through this investment annually, which will provide real opportunities to many new entrants to our sector.
“The UK Government has stated its ambition of ‘levelling up’ the economy, but industry needs to have a clear sight of forward investment if we are to upskill and recruit the workforce to deliver on this promise.
“Today’s publications put meat on the bones of the Government’s ambitions for the UK economy, providing much-needed detail on how as an industry we are going to deliver schemes that put societal outcomes, innovation, and cutting-edge technology at the forefront of project delivery.
“In particular, our members will be delighted to see the UK Government’s plans to transform infrastructure delivery over the rest of the decade – today’s publications set out not just what the pipeline of investment is, but how as a sector we will implement changes to infrastructure delivery and performance, leading to better outcomes for the public and the UK economy as a whole.
“We look forward to continuing to work with our members and both national and devolved governments to ensure we get spades in the ground on this investment as expeditiously as possible, thereby securing economic growth and creating jobs, to the benefit of businesses and communities across all parts of the UK.”
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