Government investment is expected to boost public sector building activity this year, according to forecasts by the Construction Products Association.
Public sector work, including private finance initiative schemes, is predicted to grow by 7% whereas private sector jobs will fall because of slower UK growth and an uncertain world economy. Overall construction growth is expected to fall to 1.8%.
Kevin Cubbage, director of the British Woodworking Federation, agrees more public sector work is coming through.
He said: ‘A lot of our members are involved with hospital work and obviously schools and education. It looks fairly buoyant at the moment.’
Output is forecast to grow by 3.5% and 3.8% in 2003 and 2004 respectively – the first time it will exceed the general economy’s growth in more than a decade.
