Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour says classroom building can now be done in a much cost-effectively. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Builders say school construction projects have been put off too long and the latest investment has come at a good time for the industry.
The government wants to speed up a suite of classroom upgrades and school maintenance projects to help boost the struggling construction sector, with a $413 investment package announced on Monday. Of that, $58m was new funding.
Infrastructure New Zealand's chief executive Nick Leggett. Photo: RNZ/ Tom Kitchin
Infrastructure New Zealand's chief executive Nick Leggett said the government had heeded the call from industry to get more standardised work into the market as quickly as possible.
The announcement has come at a good time for the industry - but could have come earlier, he said.
"We will know soon enough if it is enough, and if it isn't enough of an injection we should be expecting the government to make new announcements in the Budget next year."
New Zealand Certified Builders chief executive Malcolm Fleming told Morning Report the move was timely.
"We can't keep kicking the can down the road for our infrastructure in this country for a couple of reasons. They keep continuing to deteriorate and that's our hospitals, our schools, universities, even police stations, which got a bit of a shout out a few months ago about being in poor condition.
"We can't continue to do that."
Fleming said the sector could ill-afford to have a depleted workforce that put pressure on workers to deliver when the work did arrive.
"I don't think we'd want to be sort of pushing this out any longer. The industry has been calling now for about 18 months to unclog a pipeline for infrastructure works. Let's hope that this is the first sign of that starting to occur."
There was a six- to 12-month delay between design and on-site works, Fleming said.
He felt there was enough capacity at present in the workforce to deliver an uptick in projects.
"Hopefully that will encourage builders to start sort of looking at their staffing levels again. There's only so much time you can hang on to [apprentices].
"This will give surety of work."
Labour's building and construction spokesperson Arena Williams said the move would welcomed by many in the industry who had been doing it tough.
She said the government's previous decision to freeze funding for new school builds hit the sector hard.
Last year the government launched an inquiry into classroom builds, with the Ministry of Education had pausing some 20 projects and identifying up to 350 others "where expectations far exceeded what could be delivered".
Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour told First Up that meant building work could now be done in a much more cost-effective way.
"When we came in, yes, we stopped a lot of things because they were wasteful and unsustainable. We are now restarting a lot of activity in a way that is far more affordable."
Announcing the investment on Monday, Education Minister Erica Stanford said the government had halved the cost of a new classroom from $1.2m to $620,000.
Seymour said there were real challenges the construction industry in the private sector.
"I daresay we will get better value for the taxpayers' money on behalf of students and teachers in the current climate than when the economy is red hot".
The construction industry would also place more value on public sector projects, he said.
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