New UK construction coalition demands government action

The establishment of the Construction Growth Coalition (CGC), a newly formed group bringing together organisations from across the UK construction industry.

The coalition, which is being led by the Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA), aims to provide an independent voice for the sector, representing the entire supply chain and ensuring that businesses with first-hand industry experience have a meaningful role in shaping policy and decision-making.

Dr Victoria Hills speaks at the CGC event. (Image: CPA).

A key priority is to give greater representation to construction businesses of all sizes, particularly SMEs and micro businesses, which make up 99% of the sector.

The CGC is led by co-chairs Steve Mulholland, CPA chief executive, and Dr Victoria Hills, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).

Nine founding members represent building companies, construction plant-hire, construction management, scaffolding and access, skills and training, contracting, the self-employed and construction charities. The coalition was officially launched at the CPA Gala Dinner in Liverpool on 5 November 2026.

Representing nearly 45,000 members across the £141bn construction sector, the CGC is calling for Government action to restore confidence, support investment and protect jobs.

The launch comes as new data from Glenigan highlights a sharp decline in construction activity across the UK. Total construction project starts fell 21% to £20.3bn in the three months to September compared with the same period last year. Over the same period, starts on Nationally Significant Infrastructure projects plunged 92% to £115m, while private housing starts declined by 34% and non-residential starts fell 45%.

The CGC will campaign on the following priority areas:

• Skills, training, careers, apprenticeships and funding: making it cheaper, simpler and less risky for employers of every size to hire, train and keep people
• Taxes and fuel: a tax system that rewards investment and protects family businesses
• Regulation and procurement: properly resourced planning with a national framework of standardised conditions
• Building safety and the Single Construction Regulator: a proportionate, properly resourced regulator, with accountability where control sits
• Net zero, decarbonisation and energy: practical, affordable, technology-neutral decarbonisation, with enablers before mandates
• Mental health and wellbeing: evidence-led action on the causes of poor mental health, with a voice for SMEs

Industry issues 

The coalition warns that recent increases in employer National Insurance Contributions, changes to Business Property Relief (BPR), the introduction of the Employment Rights Act, planning delays and spiralling fuel costs and tax liabilities are damaging investment, job creation, and driving down construction activity.

The Construction Growth Coalition (CGC) launch event. (Image: CPA).

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), construction vacancies fell by a fifth (20.5%) in the three months to September compared with the previous quarter, the steepest fall of any industry, while the sector lost 23,000 jobs between March and June. Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade figures also show that construction recorded more company insolvencies than any other industry in England and Wales in the 12 months to September. According to October’s S&P Construction PMI, residential work declined at the fastest pace so far in 2026 and has done so for 22 consecutive months.

Mulholland, said, “UK construction is in full-blown crisis. Work on Britain’s biggest infrastructure projects is taking too long to get out of the ground and funded, house building is going backwards and small firms and the supply chain are being squeezed from every side.

“Our members continue to tell us the same thing: the Employment Rights Act, hikes to NICs, growing tax liabilities and endless red tape are suffocating them. At the same time, the patchwork of net zero and decarbonisation policies across the country means companies cannot invest in equipment that can be used nationwide with confidence. The result is stagnant activity, job losses, and an industry under strain.

Hills added, “Construction touches every part of national life, from the homes we live in, to the schools, hospitals and infrastructure our communities rely on. Today’s figures show an industry in crisis, and that matters for everyone.

“The Construction Growth Coalition brings the whole industry together, from sole traders and SMEs, to major employers and industry charities, to give government a single, informed voice from the backbone of British construction.”