Responding to the Chancellor’s announcement, John said: “Whilst the Budget statement pledges to invest more in the building of schools and hospitals, which we see as a key area for growth, this is realistically some three years away from happening. To help improve infrastructure, we really need to see investment in projects that can help make a difference today – greater investment in those more ‘short term’ projects will help to kick start a flagging industry.”
He continued: “Historically, the Government is the single biggest customer of the construction industry as a whole however, last year saw an 8% slip in activity. Similarly, spending in the public sector was down by around 20%. As such, we hoped the Budget announcement would address these grave issues.”
Speaking to ITV News, John was keen to ensure the views of the industry were represented. He concluded: “Whilst we all accept the fact that we have to ‘cut our own cloth’ in these difficult times, we do need to get the industry growing and help create more jobs for young people too. Construction companies are a significant employer in the UK and can act as a catalyst for economic growth but this needs to be supported by the Government.
The economic downturn is forcing us at LIG to develop our business overseas however, this latest Budget announcement offers very little to British export companies. To move forward, we need more than words, we need actions.”
Offering doorsets, architectural ironmongery, balustrading, glazing, access control and partitioning solutions from within its divisions – Laidlaw, Saturn Architectural, Komfort, Leaderflush Shapland, Fitzpatrick, Longden, Cubicle Systems, Tufwell Glass and TDSL – LIG can provide a solution that meets most needs by combining its specialist expertise to deliver a ‘one stop shop’ for interior specification.
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