According to the Scottish Building Federation (SBF), the construction industry is facing an increasing shortage of suitably skilled managers and supervisors.

In its quarterly Scottish Construction Monitor, while the federation did record a 31 point improvement in confidence compared to the year before, it added that the skills shortage could create "real challenges" for employers in the sector.

It explained that 90% of employers seeking to recruit managerial staff externally reported "significant difficulties" with finding a suitable candidate.

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SBF Managing Director, Vaughan Hart, explained: "After such a prolonged downturn in the fortunes of the construction sector, it is very encouraging to see a significant improvement in confidence amongst our members and a positive rating overall.

"It is also pleasing to see projections that the number of managerial and supervisory staff the Scottish construction industry employs will increase significantly over the next three years.

"At the same time, cash flow and a lack of certainty about the future work pipeline remain key obstacles to further investment in training and development for many firms."

Mr Hart added that the lack of experienced senior staff "could create real challenges for the industry as the recovery gathers pace".

(JP/CD)