Trade bodies representing the providers of construction materials and equipment have warned a no-deal Brexit will lead to substantial price rises and shortages.<\/p>\n
Builders Merchants Federation chief executive John Newcomb said: \u201cWe need a deal with the EU. Without it, the impact of large-scale price increases across the industry and other issues will present a big blow to the UK economy.\u201d<\/p>\n
That forecast was echoed by Construction Products Association chief executive Peter Caplehorn, who said a no-deal Brexit would pile pressure on an industry already weakened by the coronavirus crisis: \u201cIn addition to the potential for increased prices, the sector is concerned that a no-deal [outcome] will result in further uncertainty over the availability of components, materials, and significant commodities.\u201d he said. \u201cEvery effort should be made to ensure a deal is delivered.\u201d<\/p>\n
Caplehorn and Newcomb are co-chairs of a Brexit-focused products and materials group convened by the Construction Leadership Council (CLC), which today warned that \u201ctariffs, border controls and disruption to the supply chain will impact an industry already balancing the challenges of COVID-19\u201d.<\/p>\n
Newcomb added: \u201cOur worry is that, if we have no deal and then go to World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariffs, we will definitely get significant price increases.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bathroom Manufacturers Association chief executive Tom Reynolds predicted that new customs arrangements will lead to \u201csignificant additional costs\u201d that suppliers will struggle to absorb. \u201cA significant proportion of bathroom products come from the EU, so new tariffs, possibly ranging from 2 to 12 per cent, will in most cases need to be passed through into price rises.\u201d<\/p>\n
Federation of Master Builders chief executive Brian Berry said Brexit uncertainty on top of COVID-19 has already delivered a blow to industry confidence: \u201cOngoing uncertainty and price increases are having a real impact on builders\u2019 ability to plan for jobs,\u201d he said. \u201cThey are struggling to reliably cost jobs and quote for work because they don\u2019t know what the cost of materials will be from one week to the next.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ian McConville, group procurement director at builders merchant MKM Building Supplies, suggested that the lack of Brexit-induced price rises to date was no indication of what might happen next year. \u201cWe are seeing no evidence of material prices at the moment due to Brexit,\u201d he said. \u201cHowever, we have seen notifications of potential increases dependent on WTO tariffs being applied.\u201d<\/p>\n
Earlier this week, the CLC published guides on the movement of goods and materials<\/a> after the end of the Brexit transition period, and on conformance-marking of products<\/a>. It noted that around a quarter of construction products used in the UK are imported, with two thirds of that total brought in from the EU.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Trade bodies representing the providers of construction materials and equipment have warned a no-deal Brexit will lead to substantial price rises and shortages. Builders Merchants Federation chief executive John Newcomb said: \u201cWe need a deal with the EU. Without it, the impact of large-scale price increases across the industry and other issues will present a …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84992,"featured_media":380905,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false},"categories":[564,552,57171],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n