A new survey has suggested that Scotland's construction sector may finally be recovering as the number of new building projects begins to increase.

The latest survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors found that industry activity seemed to be "edging upwards".

There was an 11% increase in the number of surveyors reporting increases in workloads for the second quarter of the year, which was the most positive reading since the first quarter of 2008.

RICS said this optimism was expected to continue throughout the coming year, with a third (33%) of those surveyed predicting workloads would continue to increase, rather than fall.

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There were also signed that the sector's collapse in profitability could be on the verge of reverse, and as a result, this was leading to greater optimism about the prospects for employment. 22% of respondents said they expected job opportunities to increase within the next 12 months.

RICS Scotland Director Sarah Speirs said: "It is most definitely good news that the amount of construction taking place across the country seems to have turned a corner.

"Increasing numbers of homes, infrastructure projects, shops and offices can only be good for the wider economy.

"It is important however, that we keep this in perspective.

"Construction across Scotland has been falling for quite some time and despite an increase in activity, there is still a long way to go and a number of financial barriers to remove before we can start talking about a full recovery."

(JP/MH)