Political positioning front and centre in a ‘mixed bag Budget’

The British Woodworking Federation (BWF) has responded to today's Budget Announcement from the Chancellor, welcoming the support for business investment but expressing concerns that more should have been done to help head off competition from imported products and encourage investment in our housing stock.

Iain McIlwee, Chief Executive of the BWF said today:

“It was a mixed bag Budget, with political positioning front and centre.  Help to Buy is a help to build, but it’s not enough – to make a difference we should be looking seriously at public owned housing options.  Support for business investment is also welcome, but we are not encouraging investment in our housing stock. Again, the Green Deal didn’t get a mention, nor the option to reduce VAT on refurbishment and repair work, which at 20% still acts as a disincentive and a dampener on the domestic RMI sector.

“There is significant support in the Budget for high energy users, but little encouragement for more environmentally sensitive sectors.  And I worry about the broad brush approach to exporting. We must remember that only a small proportion of manufacturers are exporting.  This can grow, but it starts by nurturing all manufacturers, and from this base stronger companies will emerge to export.  Right now, for many manufacturers the challenge of competing with imports outweighs the opportunities that exports are providing. Unfortunately this was overlooked by the Chancellor today.”

In the BWF’s pre-budget submission to the Chancellor, Iain McIlwee urged government to make driving investment and encouraging broader growth the priority, with particular emphasis on increasing the UK's housing stock and incentivising RMI work on existing buildings.

You can get further information on what the Budget means for the Construction Industry by logging in and viewing the CPA Weekly Notes Budget Special.