JERSEY’S construction sector has weathered ‘very bad storms’ and its workforce could face a greater risk of further redundancies unless it receives ‘accelerated’ government support and investment, according to a leading industry body.
The Jersey Construction Council has urged politicians in the States Assembly to support the 2024 Government Plan, which is due for debate in December and contains plans for a £113 million capital programme – including infrastructure and public estate developments.
This year, the Island’s construction sector saw the collapse of construction firms Camerons and JP Mauger, sparking fears of a negative ‘ripple effect’ on the economy.
Citing the loss of ‘several prominent local businesses’, the JCC has highlighted a series of measures it believes should be prioritised to better support the industry.
This includes improving the ‘efficiency’ of planning and building permissions processes and setting a mandatory timescale and ‘service-level’ for processing applications. It has also urged the government to ‘stick to their planned spending’ on capital projects, homes, schools and other public infrastructure – and has called for ‘a singular minister with responsibility for the Island’s construction industry’.
In a statement, the JCC said: ‘If these measures do not happen, there is a strong probability that the challenging economic conditions presently being experienced will result in more organisations finding it very difficult to continue trading profitably, increasing the risks of further redundancies in the sector.’
JCC chair Simon Matthews said the industry accounted for over 6,000 paid employees in the local economy and added around £400 million in GVA [gross value added] each year.
‘The industry has recently weathered some very bad storms. Despite the loss of several prominent local businesses, as an industry we remain very much “open for business” and resolute in our desire to help the Island build its way out of the present economic climate.
‘However, this government now needs to accelerate and maintain a sustained period of investment to see real progress with their stated aim of improving access to, and the supply of, good-quality affordable housing.’
He added that the council’s members were becoming ‘increasingly frustrated with the lack of progress on planned public spend’.
‘We urge members of the Assembly to support the 2024 Government Plan, when asked to do so. However, the Island needs the government to stick to their planned spending, in the year they propose to do so. Planned spend should be actual spend, and delivery of the government’s proposed spending plans is an absolute must.
‘With cost inflation continuing to be a problem, each year of missed promises costs the Island millions of extra pounds. In 2024, this is especially important to help make up the shortfall in work caused by the slowdown in demand from the private sector.’
Mr Matthews stressed that getting projects ‘shovel-ready’ should be prioritised ‘to ensure the sustained availability of a skilled local construction industry’.
‘The risks of getting these next 12 months wrong are particularly huge and may involve further economic hardship and duress for our industry if the right decisions are not made.’
