Today’s update: A record construction and infrastructure pipeline is colliding with acute labour shortages and tightening delivery risks, even as Westminster doubles down on transport, housing and clean energy investment. Planning reforms are being used to unlock homes near transit, while grid and nuclear projects move forward under a more interventionist state. Here’s what you need to know to stay ahead today.

🚆 Only 14% of major projects on track as £530bn pipeline strains capacity. Britain’s £530 billion construction and infrastructure pipeline is under pressure from skills shortages, regulatory drag and delivery delays, with reports warning the sector needs 250,000 new workers as around 500,000 retire over the next 15 years. Labour market growth slowed sharply in Q3 2025 to 0.1% employment growth, compared with 1.5% a year earlier, with the Building Safety Act Gateway 2 cited as a factor slowing London high‑rise schemes. Policy proposals from the Construction Plant-hire Association include reversing employer National Insurance rises and extending capital allowances to support investment, even as government capital spending is planned to rise 3.6% annually to 2030, much of it directed to the energy transition. This widening gap between pipeline ambition and workforce capacity is a core risk for contractors, clients and funders planning multi-year programmes. (Source: projectplant.co.uk, bdcmagazine.com, gov.uk)

🚆 East West Rail sets £7bn route update with 80+ design changes. East West Rail has published an updated routemap for its next phase, outlining around £7 billion of works and more than 80 design changes building on the government’s existing £2.5 billion funding commitment. The scheme promises more frequent trains, new stations including on the Marston Vale Line near Bedford, and support for up to 100,000 new homes and tens of thousands of jobs by 2050. For the supply chain, this locks in a long-run pipeline across civils, stations, housing-led regeneration and associated infrastructure along the Oxford–Cambridge arc. (Source: gov.uk, ice.org.uk)

🏗️ ‘Default yes’ planning near stations to underpin 1.5m homes pledge. New planning rules introduce a “default yes” presumption for housing within a 15‑minute walk of train and tram stations, extending to some grey belt and parts of green belt land. A revised National Planning Policy Framework now requires local authorities to set housing targets prioritising brownfield and grey belt, backed by the Planning and Infrastructure Bill 2025, which aims to streamline approvals, ease aspects of environmental compliance and give ministers stronger powers to intervene in stalled large schemes. For developers and investors, this signals a more centralised, pro‑supply stance intended to accelerate delivery of 1.5 million homes this Parliament, though local implementation and legal challenge risk will be key to watch. (Source: gov.uk, institute for government, hbf.co.uk, itv.com)

💰 Construction output flatlines as PMI signals contraction but orders rebound. Official data show UK construction output edging up just 0.1% in Q3 2025, while the S&P Global construction PMI fell to 44.1 in October, pointing to sector contraction. Yet new orders rose 9.8% in the quarter, driven mainly by commercial and industrial work, and forecasts suggest private housing starts could rise 13–15% in 2025–26 despite a 1.9% fall in the latest quarter. With cash flow and payment collection still tight in supply chains, contractors face a challenging near term but with a potentially stronger medium-term pipeline, especially where public and export-backed projects, such as OES Group’s £5.5 million UKEF-supported contract, can bridge gaps. (Source: ons.gov.uk, businesswire.com, purplexmarketing.com, londonstockexchange.com, gov.uk)

🌱 Ofgem backs grid upgrades as offshore wind, storage and SMRs advance. Ofgem has approved early construction funding for major electricity transmission reinforcements, including Scotland’s 400kV Spittal–Beauly line and the Sea Link interconnector between Suffolk and Kent, to connect growing volumes of renewables. These decisions coincide with large offshore wind schemes such as the £8 billion Hornsea Project Four, the £2.5 billion Green Volt Offshore Wind Farm and new Celtic Sea floating rights, alongside progress on small modular nuclear reactors at Wylfa and grid-scale storage like Invinity’s LoDES battery in East Sussex. The combination of regulatory support and project mobilisation underpins a substantial pipeline in energy civils and M&E, but will compete directly for skills and capital with other major programmes. (Source: ofgem.gov.uk, renewableuk.com, investegate.co.uk, gov.uk)

Also in the news

🚆 Government has earmarked £15.6 billion for city region transport settlements plus additional billions for carbon capture and energy efficiency, reinforcing long-term demand for urban transit, retrofit and decarbonisation projects. (Source: gov.uk, miragenews.com) 🏛️ The Planning and Infrastructure Bill 2025 continues its passage through Parliament, seeking to accelerate major housing and infrastructure approvals and expand ministerial call-in powers over stalled local decisions. (Source: gov.uk, institute for government) 🏗️ Rental market reform via the Renters’ Rights Bill and leasehold/commonhold changes is progressing, which could reshape investment strategies for build-to-rent and large residential portfolios. (Source: gov.uk, itv.com) 🌱 Tata Steel’s £1.25 billion Port Talbot overhaul and the Didcot substation upgrade are moving forward, signalling continued heavy industrial and grid investment aligned with decarbonisation goals. (Source: gov.uk, ec.europa.eu) 🌱 Government energy schemes, including the Boiler Upgrade Scheme’s expansion to heat pumps and heat batteries, highlight rising emphasis on domestic retrofit and urban heat resilience as climate adaptation pressures grow. (Source: gov.uk) The Daily Build is written for people steering real-world projects through this evolving landscape of policy, finance and delivery risk.

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