§ Mr. Simon CoombsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action he has taken within his Department to support his sponsorship of the construction industry.
§ Mr. Robert B. JonesFollowing a reorganisation of sponsorship activities last year, my Department has undertaken, and is continuing to undertake, an enhanced range of activities to encourage the success and competitiveness of the construction industry both at home and overseas.
These include:
Consultation arrangements between the Department and the industry, comprising twice-yearly meetings between the Secretary of State for the Environment and senior industry representatives on strategic issues; regular briefing meetings between the industry representatives and Ministers on specific construction-related topics, thus enabling Ministers to hear industry's views and concerns at first hand; meetings of a consultative group set up to discuss current issues and concerns at official level; a consultative committee on construction industry statistics set up to discuss initiatives on the provision of statistical and market intelligence information; and the publication of "Construction Monitor", a monthly newsletter published with Building magazine, containing European, United Kingdom and statistical information.
Sponsorship activities, including helping to take forward the implementation of the Latham Report into the construction industry's procurement and contractual arrangements; progressing the practical implementation of the Construction Products Directive; the establishment with the industry of the Construction Procurement Group which aims to help reduce the United Kingdom's excessive trade deficit in construction products; the launch of a Construction Benchmarking Challenge which is providing financial assistance towards the establishment of four benchmarking clubs; carrying out strategic analyses of specific sectors of the industry to identify ways of improving Government support; proposals to promote prompt payment arrangements in Government construction contracts through use of standard contract conditions; provision of an improved range of statistics and other information to help industry decision makers; policy opposition to the use of on-demand bonds; and proposals to reform the Architects' Registration Acts to simplify the current system.
Research and Innovation initiatives, including the establishment of a whole industry research strategy group 730W to develop a joint Government industry strategy for research and innovation; establishment of a construction industry panel under the Government's Technology Foresight programme; increasing the proportion of total research and development spend allocated to collaborative projects funded jointly with industry; the launch of the construction industry European research club with strong DoE encouragement to help the United Kingdom construction industry to increase its participation in European research, and gain increased access to funding; the launch of the LINK/IDAC integration in design and construction programme to encourage improvements in the quality and competitiveness of the United Kingdom construction industry through academic/industry research into the construction process; and support for the Construction Quality Forum which seeks to improve quality in construction through information exchange.
Export Services, including carrying out six trade missions in 1994, the setting up of a number of building material task forces; the production of a new video to promote the British construction industry around the world; and the organisation of inward visits by overseas clients.