Connect with us

Headline

Japa: Shortage Of Bricklayers, Roofers, Carpenters Hits UK

Published

on

The United Kingdom, UK is grappling with a shortage of bricklayers and other construction workers, causing prolonged delays for homeowners seeking building services.

Since 2021, a staggering 415,000 people have experienced over a year-long wait to secure a builder, according to a national construction audit by Fix Radio.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

The shortage extends beyond builders, with 301,000 households waiting a year for plumbers and heating engineers, 294,000 for roofers, and 274,000 for carpenters.

On average, the wait for a bricklayer over the past three years has exceeded three months, while landscapers, painters, and decorators have left customers waiting for two and a half months, per report from Daily Mail UK.

Industry experts highlight the severe impact of this skills shortage on major projects, including delays in completing the Co-op Live venue in Manchester.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

READ ALSO: Presidency, Obi Clash Over New Presidential Jet

To meet rising demand, an additional 225,000 skilled workers are to be needed by 2027 with economic repercussions significant as the UK is projected to miss out on £98 billion of growth by 2030 due to the skills gap.

The ageing workforce exacerbates the issue, with a fifth of construction workers now over 50 and a third planning to retire by 2030.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

The Construction Industry Training Board’s Construction Skills Network estimates nearly one million tradespeople will retire in the next decade.

While migrant labour has somewhat mitigated the shortages, there is an urgent need to train more British workers.

READ ALSO: Wike Should Remain In Abuja, Leave Fubara, Rivers Alone – Clark

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

Last year, bricklayers, plasterers, roofers, and carpenters were added to the Home Office’s shortage occupation list to address the deficit.

UK government initiatives aim to alleviate the problem, including cracking down on non-vocational university degrees and funding 100,000 apprenticeships. Both Labour and Conservative parties have focused on construction in their General Election campaigns, with Labour proposing new towns and Rishi Sunak promising to build hundreds of thousands of homes in major cities.

Clive Holland of Fix Radio emphasized the critical need for more builders, warning, “If political parties, irrespective of their stripe or colour, honestly believe they can address the housing crisis without having the serious conversation of addressing the skills deficit, we’re heading into a very dangerous position.”

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

A Fix Radio survey revealed that two-thirds of Britons felt insufficiently encouraged to pursue trades in school, and 18% of parents discouraged their children from entering the construction industry due to perceived low earnings.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

Headline

‘They Checked My Instagram’ – Nigerian Lady Breaks Down After Landing In U.S, Denied Entry

Published

on

By

A Nigerian businesswoman has taken to social media to share her frustration and heartbreak after being denied entry into the United States, despite holding a valid visa.

In a video recorded on her return flight to Nigeria, the visibly distraught woman revealed that she was travelling to Texas for a trade fair.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

She said she possessed a B1/B2 visa, which allows travel for both tourism and business meetings.

READ ALSO:‘Netanyahu Must Go’, Israel’s Ex-PM Calls Leadership ‘Catastrophic’

However, upon arrival in the U.S., things took a turn.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

“I was denied entrance into the US and that is because my visa [is] a B1–B2 visa which is [for] tourism/business meetings,” she explained tearfully.

When I landed, I was detained for 24 hours and I was questioned. I told them I was going to exhibit but I did not know any better because the US has your data and your Instagram page.”

READ ALSO:Middle East Crisis Dominates EU Foreign Ministers’ Brussels Meeting

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

According to her, immigration officials scrutinised her social media activity and private messages, using them to challenge her stated purpose of visit.

Apparently, my Instagram says different. They even checked all my messages with my customers. The customers I have been telling that we are coming, they can pick up and all of that,” she said through tears.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>
Continue Reading

Headline

Uganda: After 39 Years In Power, 80-year-old Yoweri Museveni To Seek Re-election

Published

on

By

Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, has announced his intention to run in the country’s next presidential election, extending a rule that began nearly four decades ago.

In a post on the X platform late Saturday, Museveni said he had “expressed my interest in running for… the position of presidential flag bearer,” for his ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

The 80-year-old leader has governed Uganda since 1986 after seizing power following a five-year guerrilla war. Under his leadership, the ruling NRM has twice amended the constitution, allowing him to remain in office beyond term and age limits.

READ ALSO:Ugandan President Ignores S’Court Ruling, Approves Law To Try Civilians In Military Courts

According to Reuters, right groups have long accused Museveni of deploying security forces and leveraging patronage to hold onto power, an allegation he denies.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

Explaining his decision to seek reelection, Museveni said he aims to grow Uganda’s economy to a ”$500 billion economy in the next five years.” According to the finance ministry, the country’s GDP currently stands at about $66 billion.

Uganda is set to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in January next year. Museveni’s main challenger is expected to be opposition figure and pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine, who came second in the 2021 election and has declared his intention to contest again in 2026.

Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, rejected the 2021 results, alleging his victory had been stolen through “ballot stuffing, intimidation by security forces and other irregularities.”

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

Continue Reading

Headline

‘Netanyahu Must Go’, Israel’s Ex-PM Calls Leadership ‘Catastrophic’

Published

on

By

Naftali Bennett, Israel’s former Prime Minister, stated in a televised interview that current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must leave office.

Bennett refrained from saying whether he plans to challenge the longest-serving leader in the country in an upcoming election.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

In an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 that aired on Saturday, Bennett commented, “Netanyahu has been in power for 20 years… that’s too much; it’s not healthy.”

He called attention to Netanyahu’s “heavy responsibility for the divisions in Israeli society,” highlighting the growing rifts that have emerged under Netanyahu’s leadership, especially regarding his handling of the Gaza war since October 2023.

READ ALSO:Israel’s Netanyahu Says Iran Will ‘Pay Heavy Price’ After Hospital Hit

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

Bennett, a right-wing leader who joined forces with Netanyahu’s critics to form a coalition that ousted him from office after 12 consecutive years, insisted that “Netanyahu must go.”

However, the fragile coalition government Bennett led, along with current opposition leader Yair Lapid, collapsed after about a year. This led to snap elections, resulting in Netanyahu regaining the premiership with support from far-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties.

Although Bennett has taken time away from politics, there are rumors of a potential comeback, with public opinion polls indicating he may have enough support to defeat Netanyahu again. Currently, no elections are scheduled before late 2026, but early elections are common in Israel.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

In his Saturday interview, Bennett claimed credit for laying the groundwork for Israel’s bombardment campaign earlier this month against Iranian nuclear and military sites.

READ ALSO:Netanyahu Vows To Thwart ‘Any Attempt’ By Iran To Rebuild Nuclear Programme

The decision to launch attacks against the Islamic Republic “was very good” and “needed,” said Bennett, claiming that the offensive would not have been possible without the work of his short-lived government.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

In Gaza, where Israel has waged war since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, Bennett said the military has displayed “exceptional” performance, but “the political management of the country” was “a catastrophe, a disaster”.

Criticising the Netanyahu government’s “inability to decide,” the former prime minister called for an immediate “comprehensive” agreement that would see all remaining hostages freed from Gaza.

“Leave the task of eliminating Hamas to a future government,” said Bennett, who also evaded several questions about whether he intends to run for office.

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>

AFP

Advertisement
src='//groinfont.com/d3/f2/91/d3f2911ceee3d4c9a15010e4f5e9425d.js'>
Continue Reading

Trending

Exit mobile version