Today’s update: a £530bn construction and infrastructure pipeline is starting to creak under skills and delivery pressures just as ministers unveil a £725bn 10‑year strategy and fast‑track housing reforms. Energy resilience and hydrogen infrastructure are moving up the agenda, while the housing market stabilises and major utilities and nuclear frameworks change hands. Here’s what you need to know to stay ahead today.

🏗️⚙️ Cracks appear in £530bn UK construction pipeline. A new report warns that Britain’s £530bn construction and infrastructure pipeline is under strain from acute skills shortages, falling investment and delivery delays, with productivity marginally down on 1997 levels and only 14% of major government projects on track. Around 44% of firms report workforce constraints and some 500,000 workers are expected to retire over the next 15 years, pointing to growing capacity and capability gaps. For contractors and clients, risk pricing, programme realism and long‑term skills investment will be critical to delivering large schemes within the emerging national strategy. (Source: PBC Today; Project Plant)

🏛️🚆 Government sets out £725bn 10‑year infrastructure strategy. Ministers have published a 10‑year infrastructure strategy committing at least £725bn to economic and social infrastructure, alongside tighter delivery oversight through the new National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA). The plan sits alongside a separate energy resilience strategy focused on climate, cyber and geopolitical risks to critical assets. The combination of capital commitment and stronger scrutiny will sharpen competition for bankable, deliverable projects and increase expectations on governance, assurance and whole‑life value. (Source: Addleshaw Goddard; GOV.UK)

🏛️🏗️ Planning and housing reforms to fast‑track development near transport hubs. New housebuilding acceleration measures will give large housing schemes near railway stations automatic approvals in some cases and curb local councils’ ability to block them, supported by amendments allowing Ministers to override refusals and prevent permissions lapsing during judicial review. A consultation on wider planning reforms proposes trimming statutory consultees to cut delays and speeding up approvals for reservoirs and onshore windfarms. Developers and investors targeting transport‑linked and strategic infrastructure sites should reassess their pipelines and land strategies in light of a more centralised, time‑bound planning regime. (Source: MHCLG Blog; Mayer Brown)

🌱🚆 Government doubles down on energy resilience and low‑carbon infrastructure. The Energy Resilience Strategy and updated 2025 National Policy Statements for energy aim to harden substations, cables and other critical assets against flooding, cyberattack and geopolitical shocks, while supporting more rapid deployment of renewables, particularly onshore wind where capacity is targeted to reach 27–29 GW by 2030. Parallel consultations are advancing hydrogen pipelines and related infrastructure, and a new Cyber Security Bill will tighten requirements on network and information systems. Energy and civils contractors can expect a rising flow of grid, storage, hydrogen and resilience‑driven projects with more stringent technical and cyber compliance obligations. (Source: GOV.UK; Slaughter and May; Travers Smith)

💰🏗️ Construction market grows steadily amid mixed housing signals. The UK construction market is forecast to expand from £161.39bn in 2024 to £204.12bn by 2029, with growth of 4.5% this year to reach £168.6bn despite pipeline and productivity concerns. Housing data show modest 1–2.7% annual price growth and around 0.3% monthly gains, with stronger demand in northern England and Scotland, softer conditions in the South and London, and an 8–13% drop in £500k+ transactions. For residential developers, stabilising prices, rising mortgage approvals after BoE rate cuts and forecast rental growth of 4–7% in 2026 offer support, but yield pressure and upper‑end caution will keep viability finely balanced. (Source: Business Wire; Rightmove; Garrington)

🌱⚙️ Green hydrogen and utility contracts highlight shifting workloads. Plug Power has secured a 55 MW electrolyser supply deal for three government‑backed green hydrogen projects in Barrow‑in‑Furness, Trafford and Plymouth, while Quartzelec has won a £15.4m contract to upgrade the Glenlee Hydro Power Station and United Infrastructure has been awarded a £30m role in Affinity Water’s £450m AMP8 capital programme. Costain has also secured a £75m EDF nuclear framework for project controls services at eight power stations, and Downing Renewable Developments is partnering on a solar‑powered green data centre. These awards signal growing opportunity at the intersection of water, power, nuclear and digital, favouring teams with integrated energy, civils and data infrastructure capability. (Source: Global Hydrogen Review; Water Magazine; Building.co.uk)

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The Daily Build is written for people steering UK projects and portfolios, from pre‑planning to commissioning. If a colleague relies on early insight into policy shifts and contract wins, feel free to pass today’s briefing on.

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