The Construction Industry Board (CIB), the forum for debate and discussion on the construction industry, was wound up on Friday 29 June. Two days later a \'Strategic Forum\' headed by Sir John Egan came into operation.

Some key CIB projects will continue. The Considerate Constructors Scheme will be run by the Construction Confederation, the Sustainable Construction task group will continue its work under the chairmanship of Sir Martin Laing until the end of the year, the review of the adjudication process will be taken forward under the umbrella of the CIC, Sir John Egan will chair a task force on safety, the Government will take over the CIB\'s role of assessing industry performance against key performance indicators, and the CIB\'s codes of practice and guidance will continue to be available from publisher Thomas Telford Publishing.

The CIB website (www.ciboard.org.uk) will also continue for another year, maintained by the CIC.

Efforts had been made to retain the CIB as the meeting place for the industry and its clients, but now that role will be taken on by the Strategic Forum headed by Sir John.

In May, Construction Minister Nick Raynsford said when he announced the creation of the Forum: It is vitally important that this industry has a place where it can discuss strategic issues on a pan industry basis.

I am delighted that Sir John Egan, with his clear insight and background as a major construction client, has agreed to chair the new forum. Government will give it every support.