Companies should not try to blame everything on the pandemic, according to the trade body 

Covid-19 should not be exploited by companies looking to make excuses for cost rises and delays, according to the boss of Build UK.

While the pandemic has hit the economy hard, firms need to be careful not to blame everything on it, said Build UK chief executive Suzannah Nichol. 

covid

Her comments come amid recently announced delays to high profile projects. Last week Tideway announced it would be delayed by a further nine months - even though its sites reopened less than two months after the start of lockdown, albeit at a lower level of productivity.

And earlier this month Crossrail confirmed it now aims to open by 2022 instead of 2021, which means it will be more than three years late. The cost of the project, put at 拢15.4bn two years ago, is now expected to exceed 拢19bn.

Nichol would not comment on specific projects but said it is up to the industry 鈥渢o act responsibility and work out with their clients and their supply chain鈥� how they get projects back on track鈥�

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She said: 鈥淚 think it will be transparent when people are being really clear about the impacts of coronavirus and where they are chucking in things that possibly don鈥檛 belong and that鈥檚 where companies will start to make decisions in the long term about who has worked fairly and collaboratively and who hasn鈥檛.鈥�

Nichol added: 鈥淚t鈥檚 in everybody鈥檚 interests to be honest and transparent and you鈥檙e playing the long game here. If you鈥檙e not, your client will remember that, your supply chain will remember that. It鈥檚 not a sensible strategy in the long term.鈥�

While she has 鈥渘o doubt鈥� that some people will try to blame everything on covid-19, such a move would be 鈥渧ery short-sighted.鈥� 

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