黑洞社区

How much further?

This year鈥檚 Top 150 Contractors and Housebuilders tables (page 28) suggest that the sector is finally dusting itself off after years dealing with the aftermath of recession. It鈥檚 a far cry from five years ago, when the annual tables were showing only the first signs that the industry may have solid ground in sight. Despite this small beacon of positivity, the tables arrived in the same month that the government announced it was lopping 700 schools off the 黑洞社区 Schools for the Future programme, as well as cutting the Homes and Communities Agency鈥檚 budget. With this instability in mind, the slimline positivity of the tables were taken cautiously by 黑洞社区 reporter David Rogers. He said: 鈥淟ast year鈥檚 turnover figures have held up well for the top 20 firms. The biggest, Balfour Beatty, now has nearly 拢1bn more in revenues than it did in 2008, while the company in 20th place, ISG, has a turnover of 拢1.05bn compared with with the 拢1.09bn recorded by Enterprise in the same spot a year before. In a billion-turnover business, in a recession, being off by 拢40,000 is by no means a slump. But before we get carried away, let鈥檚 remember that according to the CPA, output fell by 12% last year, the sharpest drop since 1974, and there is plenty of evidence of the effect it has had on much of the industry.鈥�