Scottish builders raise concern over Brexit supply costs

Scottish construction firms have suggested that the Brexit vote is driving up building supply costs.

A Scottish Building Federation (SBF) survey found industry confidence improved after falling to a three-year low following June's EU referendum.

But 60% of respondents said they thought Brexit was driving up costs.

SBF said many firms expressed concern that some suppliers may be using economic uncertainty to increase costs artificially.

In the federation's latest quarterly Scottish Construction Monitor, companies reported a "noticeable" rise in the cost of bricks, timber and metal products such as doors and windows.

A total of 90% of those surveyed expected these costs to continue to rise over the next 12 months.

Nearly 50 construction firms took part in the survey between 1 and 12 October.

Source: Scottish Construction Monitor

SBF director Vaughan Hart said: "At the moment, the construction industry is experiencing the same uncertainties as those facing the wider economy.

"In that context, I'm encouraged that our members' confidence seems quite resilient, having rebounded back into positive territory this quarter following last quarter's negative reading.

"In the current climate, it's important that we don't inadvertently talk ourselves into an economic downturn by over-analysing the economic indicators out there or jumping to conclusions about how the economy is performing when these aren't borne out by experience on the ground."

'Exploiting uncertainty'

He added: "We need to remain vigilant against suppliers exploiting the current economic uncertainty to increase costs artificially.

"I would encourage building employers to bring any such practices to our attention so that we can raise these with government and make sure industry competitiveness isn't adversely affected as a result."

Last week, a survey by the Scottish Chambers of Commerce found a pick-up in construction activity in the third quarter.

It suggested both housebuilding and public sector contracts returned to growth, with almost 45% of all businesses in the sector stating that total sales had increased.