In the November issue of Natural Stone Specialist we reported on the shortages of bricks for housbuilding following the reduction of capacity by the makers during the downturn (read that report). Now RICS has reported that there is also a shortage of people to lay the bricks.

This has the potential to be good news for stone companies. Supply and demand dictates that shortages lead to price increases. The difference in price between stone and brick walls has already decreased considerably over the past 15 years as more houses have been built with natural stone walls and the stone suppliers have enjoyed the benefits of economies of scale. And the people building in stone have benefitted because stone houses look better, command a higher price and sell quicker.

While the recession certainly took its toll on the stone industry, traditional masons have tended to survive better than most sectors, so there is not the shortage of people to build stone houses that the latest Construction Market Survey by RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) shows exists among bricklayers.

Although the recovery in the construction industry is only just getting underway, RICS says that 36% of the respondents to its survey say labour shortages are restricting building. Skills shortages are increasing across most trades but bricklayers remain particularly scarce due to strong demand from the housing sector. A higher percentage of respondents reported more problems sourcing relevant skills than at any time since mid-2006.

Almost 40% of respondents also said that a scarcity of materials had limited their activity in the final quarter of 2013, with surveyors noting that bricks and concrete blocks, in particular, were hard to source.

Significantly, infrastructure spend ahead of the election in May 2015 is picking up speed, with the pace of growth increasing at its fastest rate in almost seven years (net balance 24%).

Looking ahead, expectations for future construction activity reported by RICS were upbeat, with 74% more chartered surveyors expecting workloads to increase than to decrease during 2014.

Furthermore, predictions for employment levels and company profits were also positive, suggesting that the construction sector may at long last be beginning to prosper.

Alan Muse, RICS Director of Built Environment, commented: "With the economy having turned a corner in recent months it would seem that the construction industry has followed suit and activity is up right across the country. More homes are being built, infrastructure is being upgraded and each part of the UK is benefiting from this more positive picture.

"However, with recent estimates stating that more than 230,000 new homes need to be built just to keep up with population growth, further initiatives from the Government will be necessary to get close to this target."