Government have been warned against cutting spend in construction
The Government have been warned not to cut budgets in construction and other labour intensive public services, as the pre budget report was released yesterday. The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) and other bodies such as the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC), have said that cutting spending on railways, roads and power stations in order to bring down debt levels, won't work- it will only hinder economic recovery.
Labour MP for Luton, Kelvin Hopkins asked his colleagues in the House of Commons, to petition against chancellor Alistair Darling making cuts within the sector, asking : "Would you urge the Chancellor not to cut public spending in the areas of public services, and construction in particular, which are labour-intensive and should make a considerable contribution to future employment?"
Mr Hopkins believes that it is important to protect public service infrastructures, in order for future construction and engineering jobs to be safe, and to create more of them. Director General of ICE, Tom Foulkes said: "We look forward to working with politicians, industry and economic experts, to develop ideas on exactly how this bank can work and ensure we get this right."
The Institution of Civil Engineers wants a UK National Infrastructure Investment Bank to provide a reliable source of funding for important infrastructure projects. They say that this will aid the transition to a low carbon economy and strengthen high speed rail, and a new generation of power stations.