The UK’s biggest property company rang alarm bells this week about the potential impact of an Olympics-driven development brain drain.
Land Securities development director Steve McGuckin said the group was concerned there would be “front-end delays” to its schemes because “half the lego set has gone missing”.
Speaking at Lords Cricket Ground on Tuesday, at a briefing on the challenges posed by the 2012 Olympics, McGuckin said:
“We are less worried about rises in fees and construction costs than we are about the loss of A-team workers as companies chase Olympics-related work.
“Our preferred consultancy and construction partners are already straining at the edges.”
McGuckin is spearheading a range of developments in the South East, including plans for a 2.3m sq ft redevelopment of land around Victoria station, SW1.
He warned: “Consultants and contractors have a choice: gorge on the opportunity for increased fees now, or concentrate on clients who will still be there in 2013.”
CB Richard Ellis’s latest research into the impact of the Games predicts that Olympics developments will generate around 15,000 construction jobs in London, a 6% rise.
Research director Richard Holberton agreed that there could be “marked labour supply and cost implications for other projects”.
Gardiner & Theobald partner Tony Burton predicted that there would be cost rises for Olympics-related projects, but said these would be minimal at other schemes.
However, he said there was real concern about the lack of “A-rated teams and leaders to go round”.
References: EGi News 05/12/05
