The construction industry could be forgiven for not looking forward to 2019 with any great relish. After all, the year begins with the economy in a moribund state, housing market confidence dropping and the very existence of some of the UK’s biggest construction firms under threat. And with Brexit looming in the next three months, there are still few signs of the “sunlit uplands” promised by Boris Johnson before the 2016 referendum. 

Of course Brexit – whenever, how and even whether it happens in 2019 – will surely set the political and economic weather that the industry operates in this year. After all, both crashing out of the EU with no deal and a Corbyn-led Labour government are both still conceivable outcomes from breaking the current political impasse, which must happen by 29 March.

But predicting how the party and parliamentary wrangling and finagling over Brexit will pan out is a tall order. So, setting Brexit to one side, what can we expect from 2019?

…