Chancellor Rachel Reeves this week confirmed government support for dozens of big projects to boost growth, on top of Labour’s existing promise to build 1.5 million new homes.
Major planning system reforms are under way in a bid to meet targets, but among the challenges the government faces in delivery is who will build them.
Construction bosses warn of a chronic worker shortage. The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) estimates at least 50,000 extra workers are needed annually to meet current demand.
But analysis for Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips now shows the UK’s population growth is far outpacing the size of its construction workforce.
Despite growing by 2.5 million people since 2019, the UK has lost 320,000 construction workers. There are now just 29 workers per 1,000 people, the lowest on record.
To address the shortage, construction has increasingly turned to overseas.
Analysis of the Office for National Statistics’ Annual Population Survey (APS) shows that in 2007, one in 12 construction or civil engineering workers was foreign-born. By 2016, this had risen to one in seven.
The APS stopped recording occupation by country of birth in 2022, so we don’t fully know the current picture.
Rishi Sunak’s Conservative government tried to attract more overseas construction workers by adding roles including bricklayers and stonemasons to the Shortage Occupation List in July 2023.
Since renamed the Immigration Salary List (ISL), over a quarter of roles now on the list are in construction.
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Labour says it wants to reduce net legal migration, which was an estimated 728,000 in the year to June 2024.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has commissioned a Migration Advisory Committee report, expected in June, assessing which sectors are “over-reliant” on international recruitment.
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So if the number of construction workers coming into the country is limited, home-grown apprentices might be expected to cover any shortfall.
Government figures show around 15,500 people start construction apprenticeships every year, but nearly one in two (47%) do not finish their course. The dropout rate has risen sharply, up from 30% in 2014/15.
A survey last year by the British Association of Construction Heads concluded the main reasons for dropping out included redundancies, firings, and low salaries.
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It means under 9,000 people a year finish their apprenticeship, one-fifth of the CITB estimate of the annual demand.
The government has funded 32 skills hubs to offer fast-track training for 5,000 extra apprentices a year by 2028, in trades such as bricklaying and scaffolding.
On today’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Trevor will be joined by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper to discuss whether the solution is more immigration or more domestic training.
Watch Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips every Sunday on Sky News from 8.30am.
