Rayner’s 1.5m homes target under fresh pressure as construction activity plunges to lowest level since pandemic

Brenna Baye, our Head of Construction recently spoke to The Independent for a story examining the recent slowdown in activity in the UK’s construction sector which in February fell to the lowest level since the pandemic.

Activity in Britain’s construction sector has plunged to its lowest level since the pandemic casting further doubt over the government’s ambitious house building targets.

Last month, Angela Rayner warned there was “no excuse” not to meet her goal of 1.5m new homes, while Sir Keir Starmer doubled down on the pledge, committing to the creation of a generation of new towns with spades in the ground before the next election in 2029.

But the latest S&P Global construction purchasing managers’ index (PMI) – which measures the activity level of purchasing managers in the construction industry – showed a reading of 44.6 in February, down from 48.1 in January…

…Meanwhile, Brenna Baye, Head of Construction at the Edwin Coe law practice, warned that the sector needs more resources.

“We have an ageing talent pool, less staff and less skills. That is also causing stoppages, extra costs and delays. We have to get back to shouting about how great working construction is”, she told The Independent.

“We have definitely seen more insolvencies. That is a collision of all the above things coming together. Costs are rising, people want the lowest prices possible when building and then suddenly inflation goes up and companies get trapped.”…

You can read the full story on The Independent’s website.