The Construction Industry Federation has written to the Minister for Finance, asking him to reverse the PRSI changes made in the Budget, saying they will push up building costs significantly. In its economic review and outlook the CIF said the PRSI increase will cost the industry £30 million pounds next year and will have a knock-on effect on all services provided by the industry. The CIF also said that growth this year in the building sector is likely to dip below 10 per cent for the first time since 1994 as the Dublin Office market fills to capacity. Overall growth for the year is forecast at about seven per cent.
Speaking at the Construction Industry Federation's annual review in Dublin today, the new CIF president, Mr Frank McCaffrey, said "the increase will cost the construction industry £30m in 2002 and will have a knock-on effect on all services provided by the industry". The action, according to the CIF president, is "anti job creation and flies in the face of the Government's stated intention of trying to keep prices and inflation down and should be reversed". He said that the CIF had written to the Minister for Finance asking him to reverse the PRSI changes introduced in the Budget.
