The building industry is heading towards a nose dive with workloads now falling for the 15th consecutive quarter.

This is the warning from the latest survey of small building companies from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).

The FMB State of Trade Survey, the only one of its kind looking at construction SMEs, reveals that workloads have now been falling since 2008 and that one in three builders expect construction workloads to fall during the final three months of this year.

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Richard Diment, Director-General of the FMB said: "When the Chancellor delivers his speech today to the Conservative Party conference he needs to be mindful that the building industry is in a dire state with little hope in the immediate future that things are going to get better. It is hard to think of another period in living memory when the building industry has been so badly hit by an economic crisis. The Chancellor needs to understand that a recovery in the construction sector is essential if it is to deliver economic growth in the wider economy."

Mr Diment continued: "44% of FMB members have reported falling levels of enquiries and the number expecting to increase employment has now fallen to just 16% which is depressing news for young people wanting an apprenticeship or a job in the construction sector. The rising cost of materials is also a serious concern to builders with 88% expecting them to increase over the next six months."

(CD)