The devolved government in Northern Ireland must do more to prevent construction workers leaving for the UK mainland, the Federation or Master Builders (FMB) has said.

The Northern Ireland Executive has been urged by the FMB to commit to "greater levels of capital spending and ensuring announced projects go ahead."

The call forms part of FMB Northern Ireland’s 'Programme for Government' which will be launched at an event in Stormont on today.

Maire Nawaz, Northern Ireland Director of the FMB, said: "The Northern Ireland construction industry is trailing behind the rest of the UK and today we’re calling on the Executive to urgently put a number of measures in place to boost workloads. While the construction sector stutters in Northern Ireland, we’re seeing stronger and more consistent growth in England, Scotland and Wales so it’s no surprise our skilled workers are being enticed over to the mainland. Our concern is, will they return to NI if and when we begin to catch up?

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"Today we have launched a concise set of recommendations for the Executive which will allow the NI construction sector to bounce back from the economic downturn – once and for all. The Executive needs to rebalance capital and current spending, commit to building at least 11,000 homes a year by 2020; and provide local employment in Northern Ireland by ensuring announced construction projects actually go ahead."

(IT/CD)