Imbert assures

GOVERNMENT will not impose price controls in the construction industry but will develop a local policy for the industry and the current construction boom will be accelerated to address Trinidad and Tobago’s developmental needs.

This came from Works and Transport Minister Colm Imbert as he addressed a construction industry forum of the TT Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA) at its Barataria headquarters yesterday.

In an address at the American Chamber of Commerce’s annual general meeting on April 11, Prime Minister Patrick Manning said Government was contemplating imposing price controls on cement, steel, concrete and aggregate in order to address any shortage of these commodities for the construction industry.

Responding to concerns raised by TT Contractors Association president Mikey Joseph and Joint Consultative Council president Winston Riley at yesterday’s forum, Imbert said Government had not drafted any policy document to implement construction sector price controls and is cognisant of the risks that come with such a system.

While indicating that price controls remain “on the table” as an option and a team of government ministers are reviewing the issue, Imbert said Government preferred to use other measures such as increasing the supplies of basic construction commodities to address any imbalances in this sector and some of these measures have been working well.

Noting local contractors’ concerns about competing against the large number of foreign construction firms in TT, Imbert said Government is developing a local content policy for the construction industry and this will create a level playing field for all parties involved.

He said Government will protect local construction firms but those firms had to understand that international competition in the construction industry was a reality throughout the world.

Imbert defended Manning’s seeming obsession with construction.

Noting that the construction sector played a critical role in Government’s efforts to diversify the economy, Imbert said Government will accelerate activity in this sector but this acceleration will be balanced with measures to address any challenges that occur.

He said when construction is taken in the proper perspective of the need for national development, Government would prefer “to deal with the challenges of a construction boom, rather than deal with the challenges of inertia, non-performance and inaction.”