Scottish construction to generate nearly 3,000 new jobs each year

Eddie Tuttle, Kevin Stewart, incoming CIOB chief executive Caroline Gumble and professor Charles Egbu present the report at the Edinburgh reception

The construction industry will generate nearly 3,000 new jobs a year for the Scottish economy between now and 2023.

That’s one of the findings revealed in a new report from the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) which examines the construction industry’s impact on the Scottish economy.

The CIOB launched the report, entitled “The Value of Construction in Scotland”, at a parliamentary reception in Edinburgh last night.

The event was part of the CIOB’s annual Member’s Forum, was attended by a number of MSPs and many senior figures from the construction industry.

Official figures suggest that the construction industry accounts for approximately 6% of total gross value added (GVA) to the UK economy. At more than £100 billion annually, that is significant but the CIOB said it still “grossly underestimates” the true value of the industry. To show how important the sector is, it is producing a series of reports looking in detail at the economic importance of construction to each part of the UK.

Among the headlines in the report focussing on Scotland:

• Scotland’s construction sector emerged faster from recession than most of the UK. However, its path since 2015 has been less vibrant with signs of output falling.
• The contribution of infrastructure to the construction sector over the past three years has been higher in Scotland, at 20%, than the GB average of 12%.
• Although trends indicate infrastructure work looks set for a drop, new housing, particularly in the public sector, is expected to grow.
• Employment is set to expand slightly between 2019-2023. The region is forecast to have an annual recruitment rate of 2,790 new workers each year (approximately 12 new recruits for every 1,000 currently in the workforce).

Eddie Tuttle, the CIOB’s director of policy, research & public affairs, said: “The CIOB’s key recommendation is to examine how to moderate volatility in the Scottish construction industry; trying to take steps to smooth out the work so that the sector is not so reliant on infrastructure projects. As one practical output of this approach, during upturns and downturns, there should be less volatility in the workforce, with fewer workers leaving the industry.”

The CIOB’s new president, professor Charles Egbu, who hosted the Edinburgh Castle event, said: “The challenge is ensuring that we have a construction industry that’s fit for the future – across Scotland and the rest of the UK. The Construction Industry Training Board’s Construction Skills Network 2018-22 refers to this indicating that construction output is expected to grow over the next five years, with 158,000 jobs to be created. Getting a clear economic picture of what’s happening in our industry in each region is going to enable us to develop and deploy the skills and resources needed to support the crucial work our industry does across the UK.”

The reception was attended by several members of the Scottish Parliament, including Kevin Stewart MSP, minister for local government, housing and planning, and Monica Lennon MSP, Scottish Labour shadow cabinet secretary for health & sport and chair of the Cross-Party Group on Construction.

Kevin Stewart has also published a blog for the CIOB, entitled Investing in Scottish infrastructure, which outlines some of the planned investment coming from the Scottish government, with specific reference to the Scottish Infrastructure Commission which was set up earlier this year.

“The Value of Construction in Scotland” report, available free online, is one of a number that will be produced by the CIOB this year, looking at every region of the UK. The full suite of reports will be available later this year.