Improving standards in public projects: Faster, greener, better
The Government has recently published a Construction Playbook outlining how government will work with the industry to improve standards in public projects with the objective of delivering these faster, better and greener.
Construction will be key to the UK’s recovery from Covid-19 and this follows Boris Johnson’s announcement to “build, build, build” while also recognising the importance of building back better to bring down emissions for greenhouse gases and reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Measures include:
The Joint Industry Board (JIB) has been speaking to government, through the Department for Business, Energy, Innovation and Skills, and the Construction Leadership Council (CLC), about the gold standard for employment JIB member companies achieve operating under the National Working Rule Agreements. This includes the excellent reputation JIB member companies have for direct employment, apprenticeships and training and JIB member companies are well placed to meet the terms of the Construction Playbook.
Andy Mitchell, industry-side co-chair of the Construction Leadership Council, said the Playbook “aims to embed a new approach to the procurement and delivery of construction projects and programmes, which is more collaborative, engages the whole supply chain, encourages investment in innovation and skills, and supports a more sustainable, resilient and profitable industry, capable of delivering higher quality, safer and better performing built assets for its clients.”
He continued: “It will create the foundation for a new approach to construction, where we can utilise digital and offsite manufacturing technologies to increase the capability of the industry and accelerate the delivery of built assets. It will also aim to deliver a better and fairer industry, with stronger and more open relationships between the industry and its clients, fewer disputes, and more equitable contractual terms, that ensure prompt and fair payment and a balanced allocation of risk, where these are managed by the organisation best placed to do so. Finally, it will help ensure that investment in construction projects creates the greatest economic, social and environmental value possible, and contributes to the delivery of strategic policy objectives such as our legal obligation to achieve net zero carbon by 2050 and levelling up across the UK.”
The Construction Playbook also references the minimum weighting of 10% social value which should be applied to procurement for central government contracts under Procurement Policy Note 06/20.
(https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/921437/PPN-06_20-Taking-Account-of-Social-Value-in-the-Award-of-Central-Government-Contracts.pdf) which again puts JIB member companies in a strong position to highlight the benefits of direct employment, apprenticeships, industry recognised terms and conditions, modern slavery and skills development. More information about client recognition of JIB member companies can be found here
