Dear Editor,
Projections from CITB-ConstructionSkills that 2012 will be another tough year for the Scottish construction sector come as no surprise but are still a cause for concern. Longer term the industry is expected to recover – albeit slowly – but the damage caused by the current downturn risks being felt for many years to come.
It is particularly concerning to see the industry’s core manual trades hit so hard by redundancies, with thousands of skilled individuals expected to lose their jobs over the next five years.
It needn’t be that way. The Scottish Government’s ambitious commitment to create 25,000 new apprenticeships each year over the lifetime of the current Scottish Parliament should become more than a simple numbers game.
Accompanying this commitment, there must be a targeted strategy to rebuild the skills and capacity the construction industry will undoubtedly need – including in the manual trades – to meet demand when the recovery finally comes.
Beyond funding for apprenticeship places, the Scottish Government needs to put additional funding into key sectors such as housebuilding and the warm homes fund. That will enable more employers to offer young people an apprenticeship in construction, helping to build the future skills and capacity we need for the long term.
Yours sincerely,
Michael Levack
Chief Executive
Scottish Building Federation
