Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the current level of national shortage of skilled (1) bricklayers, (2) roofers, (3) plasterers, (4) carpenters, and (5) electricians.

The Government is working with industry to increase the capacity of skilled workers, including those in the trade professions, to deliver its infrastructure, housing and wider built environment objectives. It is essential that all construction trades working within the built environment have the right level of skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours, as required by the Building Safety Act.

The Government has already announced the introduction of Skills England which will be crucial to providing high quality training to the next generation of construction workers to deliver the built environment we need.

We do not currently have the specific and accurate information on shortages. The Department for Business and Trade is working across Government to understand the full impacts on shortages for the construction sector and the built environment and infrastructure commitments that the Government has set out.