'The Farmer Review of the UK Construction Labour Model' was commissioned in February 2016 by the Construction Leadership Council at the request of the government. Led by CEO of Cast Consultancy, Mark Farmer, the report investigated the current labour model and proposed actions to safeguard the industry's future. The report suggests that the UK's construction industry faces 'inexorable decline' unless longstanding problems are addressed.
It has come to be known as ‘Modernise or Die’ a deliberately provocative title chosen by Farmer to drive debate and make sure people took notice of his recommendations.
It must be “modernise or die”, warns Mark Farmer, who believes that within 10 years it will have shrunk to a shell of its former self. Farmer believes the skills crisis facing construction will cripple the UK, and which it may never recover from.
“I tried to say it in as stark terms as possible – to get people to sit up and take notice,” he says, adding that the Government told him not to pull any punches. “Because if you’re not careful, it will just play out in the background.”
He describes the problem as a “ticking time bomb”: due to an ageing population and a lack of new entrants, put off by the boom and bust cycle, the workforce will decrease by 20-25pc in the next 10 years. A 2015 paper by construction consultancy Arcadis, where Farmer used to work, said that 700,000 people need to be recruited in the next five years just to replace those leaving the industry.
The report dwells on the importance of finding a home-grown solution to the crisis, which is particularly salient with Brexit. The UK can look to Japan for what the future of its construction industry might look like. “They are probably ahead of us on the ageing demographic curve, and they are really struggling,” says Farmer. It has the same problems as the UK - namely an ageing population and a difficulty enticing new entrants - and its industry has shrunk by a third since 1997.
If you have heard any of his comments, read the report or seen any of the discussions subsequently it is worth attending this event. Mark Farmer will be speaking at a CEW Breakfast event on 17th October held in Cardiff, to book your place please contact CEWales Events stating your full contact details. Substitution of delegates can be made at any time.
