Construction industry lack of innovation is ‘holding Ireland back’ according to Leo Varadkar

You may have read An Taoiseach’s comments made at the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) conference earlier this week and they certainly raised some eyebrows in the room. For Leo Varadkar, he created some headlines with not only his comments at the conference but also with his clash with Michael Martin in the Dail. This has put the construction industry back into the public eye because of the scale of the commentary in the broadsheets this week (likely not a coincidence given Budget 2020 is just around the corner).Back to the CIF conference, this event is typically attended by developers and builders who will have heard Leo Varadkar’s comments about innovation shortfalls across the industry and why things need to change ,particularly in the context of planning. According to the Independent, Leo Varadkar vowed to tackle “vexatious disputes” that tie up essential housing and industrial projects for years in his Croke Park address to CIF members. Those in attendance would also have heard broadcaster Ivan Yates discuss this in slight less diplomatic words!

The Taoiseach went on to tell the attendees that he personally found it “frustrating”, and it is frustrating for the Government, that so many proposed developments get caught up in the courts after going through the local authority planning process or An Bord Pleanala. Leo Varadkar noted that such disputes are far too easy in Ireland. He went on to say that Government is drafting a Planning and Development Bill that would give clarity and hopefully, speed up the processes. This is welcome news to the home builders and developers around Ireland, but only if the action benefits the industry quickly.

Of course, these comments are welcome but Leo Varadkar did take the time to mention the construction industry’s slow response to innovation as holding back progress in the sector. It is difficult to argue with those comments considering that innovation is seen as the lifeblood of sustainable businesses (from all sectors). Yet, construction has seen little investment in innovation. While there are many construction companies embracing technology and innovation as Leo Varadkar said, there isn’t enough to make it mainstream and it is holding Ireland back.

Construction industry experts have struggled to adopt technology and innovation into their businesses but it is important to note that the country’s construction industry is still recovering from the lost decade. The housing crisis has become a national emergency and is undoubtedly a consequence of the collapse of the industry and the lack of housing that was delivered for many years.

While Leo Varadkar was making these comments at the CIF conference, he also clashed with Michael Martin about Fianna Fáil “breaking the construction industry and public policy” earlier this week in the Dail. An article published in the Irish Examiner yesterday, reported that the Fianna Fáil leader raised reports that the Government’s fast-track planning system came about because of developer pressure. Deputy Martin said the government has failed in eight years to deal with a shortfall in construction but Leo Varadkar took no prisoners when attributing blame to the  party for their mistakes causing a generation of homeowners in negative equity, mortgage arrears, ghost estates and people working in the construction industry being forced to emigrate.

Challenging times for the construction industry means it must improve, however,  one key theme of the CIF conference was about the real opportunities for players within the industry who embrace change and adopt the right combination of emerging technologies. It is becoming clear that there is a widening gap between exemplars in construction and those who are just keeping their heads down, only looking from project to project without sight of the bigger picture. The real question is which side of that gap do you want your business to be on?