Following a landslide victory in June’s general election, Keir Starmer’s Labour Party became the first non-Conservative Government to lead the UK in 14 years.
As part of their manifesto, Labour announced significant plans that could impact the construction industry, with green energy, affordable housing and ongoing skills shortages key focus areas.
So what does Labour’s victory mean for those currently or considering working in the construction sector?
1.5 million new homes
Labour has promised “the biggest increase in social and affordable house building in a generation.” Over the next five years, they pledge to build 1.5 million new homes. These plans include creating several ‘new towns’ comprising residential developments, green spaces and high streets.
Within the Get Britain Building section of the manifesto, Labour says: “We will immediately update the National Policy Planning Framework to undo damaging Conservative changes, including restoring mandatory housing targets. We will take tough action to ensure that planning authorities have up-to-date Local Plans and reform and strengthen the presumption in favour of sustainable development.”
Along with the building targets, Labour has said it hopes that major planning reforms and a ‘fast track planning approval’ on urban brownfield sites would allow them to get this underway as quickly as possible.
Investment in green energy
A commitment to introduce a new Energy Independence Act could also have huge implications and opportunities for construction. As part of the legislation, Labour says it wants to create 650,000 jobs by ‘investing in the industries of the future’.
Touting £8.3bn worth of investment, plans include tripling the UK’s use of solar power, the quadrupling of offshore wind by 2030 and £500m going towards the manufacturing of green hydrogen.
As well as the above, an extra £6.6bn has been promised to upgrade five million homes as part of the Warm Homes Plan. This would offer homeowners access to grants and low-interest loans to invest in insulation and other green technologies including solar panels and low-carbon heating alternatives.
In addition, the act commits to ensuring homes in the private rented sector meet minimum energy efficiency standards by 2030.
Tackling skills shortages
Skills shortages have hampered the construction industry for years, and the issue has shown no signs of fading soon.
While Labour hasn’t promised any kind of quick fix in relation to this, it has said it will focus on upskilling workers here in the UK as opposed to relying as heavily on overseas workers. To do so, the government says it will implement training plans and boost vocational courses for high-demand industries.
While this may cause some concerns for construction bosses who are desperate for new talent now, Labour has also said it will work closely with the Migration Advisory Committee to “identify current and future skills gaps, and put in place plans to address those gaps.”
In terms of wages, the party has said it will ensure that the UK minimum wage is a genuine living wage. To do so, it will change the remit of the independent Low Pay Commission and remove wage age bands, meaning all adults are entitled to the same minimum wage. This could help make entry-level construction roles more attractive to newcomers.
Given the ambitious homebuilding targets, should these plans materialise it’s highly likely that the next five years and beyond would see a significant surge in construction output.
Meanwhile, the Energy Independence Act suggests that tradespeople with knowledge of sustainable technologies could well find their services in high demand going forward, making investment in these skills a worthwhile consideration.