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A new report by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has found that the construction industry has seen a steady growth in the third quarter thanks mainly to the booming housing and commercial property markets.

RICS chief economist Milan Khatri said: 鈥淭he immediate outlook for the construction industry is bright, as a healthy economic outlook continues to boost workloads.鈥�

The construction market survey for third quarter 2006 found that although growth in construction workloads had slowed down compared to the previous three quarters, it was still high and well above the same period in 2005, with strongest activity reported in commercial and private housing construction.

The survey also found that there is no longer a major shortage for skilled labour thanks mainly to the recent arrival of migrant workers from the former Eastern bloc.

This has been with the exception of Scotland which has not benefited from the new migrant labour force, with skill shortages reported to be the highest since the first quarter of 2000.

However the RICS warned that although the industry has been boosted by a strong economy and a boom in the housing and commercial property sector, the rising price of raw materials, and as a result cost, may put a shadow on the future growth in construction.

Khatri concluded: 鈥淚nterest rates are set to rise further and will cool the property market in 2007 as such we foresee a market slowdown in the construction industry. If the government goes ahead with it鈥檚 proposals for Planning Gains Supplement there is a risk that small developers will be driven out of the market and first-time buyers will feel the knock-on effect as the property market creates another brick wall.鈥�

The mood for now though seems optimistic, with 42% more surveyors expecting a rise in employment for the next 12 months, up from 39% in the previous quarter.