18th November 2009 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Today’s Queen’s Speech outlining the Government’s legislative programme for the months ahead offers no real practical help for small construction companies struggling to survive the recession, warns the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).
Brian Berry, Director of External Affairs at the FMB said:
“The range of measures announced today are essentially aspirational and political and overlook the needs of small businesses struggling to keep afloat. Specific measures to get the banks lending to small businesses would have made a real difference as would a delivery plan to retrofit Britain’s 26 million homes, helping create and secure thousands of jobs in the building sector.”
Berry concluded:
“What measures have been presented offer little chance of being enacted given that we are now only six months away from the general election. This is another example of a legislative programme that fails to go far enough. The tragedy is that we’re now entering a political vacuum in terms of policy delivery which can only damage the long term prospects for the construction industry and business in general.”
