It appears that there are more quantity surveying jobs in the UK being advertised each day and job seekers searching this website will see evidence of that. However, as the country limps out of the recession that hit so hard over the previous 18 months, what can be done to secure the future of the construction industry?

Construction, engineering building surveying, chartered surveying and quantity surveying jobs in the UK amongst others need some sort of stimulus to boost the industry?s prospects. The Cut the VAT coalition argues that reducing VAT to 5 percent on the repair and maintenance of homes could benefit the UK economy to the tune of ?17 billion by 2019.

Of course a cut in VAT during the recession was implemented by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling when he took two and a half percent off on a temporary basis to boost UK businesses and retailers. However a huge cut to five percent seems unthinkable surely, especially when the Treasury is looking to recoup as much as possible to cut the budget deficit.

Cut the Vat, whose members include the National Trust and the Royal Institute for Chartered Surveyors argue that this would provide substantial gains to the economy and the construction industry. They say such a measure could lead to an additional 24,000 jobs not counting the knock on effect of additional jobs through demand for related products and services.

Such a measure would be a welcome boost for construction workers as well as engineers building, chartered and quantity surveying jobs in the UK. Nothing is impossible as Gordon Brown cut VAT from 17.5 to 5 percent on on the installation of energy saving materials in 1999.