Construction stakeholders believe that the Construction 2020 initiative should be reinforced in order to fully achieve its ambitions, aimed at supporting the construction sector’s adaptation to key emerging challenges and to promote the sustainable competitiveness of the sector. To this end, major European construction representatives have united, to stress their commitment to the extension of the existing programme in the form of the “Construction 2050: Building tomorrow’s Europe today” initiative. This comprehensive framework should be fully embraced by all actors in the construction ecosystem, Member States and European institutions. Building on the results of the current Construction 2020 initiative, this new framework should be based on the following principles:

• A specific targeted approach to construction because the sector is at the crossroads of different value chains and its unique nature requires a unique approach
• An adaptable policy framework to address the evolving construction ecosystem and the transformation of the industry
• A holistic approach towards policy making in order to implement coherent and balanced policies and legislation
• A strong partnership between the European institutions, the Member States and construction social partners and stakeholders to steer the transformation of the sector with the most adequate policies and tools.

In order to implement these principles, construction stakeholders have published a common vision for the future of the construction sector. This vision identifies the main challenges for the construction sector and contains concrete proposals. “Construction 2050, Building tomorrow’s Europe today” is available here.

Koen Coppenholle, CEMBUREAU Chief Executive, stated: “A specific policy framework for the built environment at EU level is needed since we are an industry where cooperation along the value chain and with policy makers is key to bring all three pillars of sustainability environmental, social and economic to society”.

By optimising the way construction works thanks to the development of a new inspiring and relevant policy framework, we will improve the lives of European citizens by providing higher value with fewer natural resources; and higher quality assets for owners and users. Construction is the solution industry. Addressing the challenges that the construction sector is facing means addressing the challenges of European citizens.

The sustainable Europe of tomorrow cannot be achieved without the construction sector. All the actors in the construction process must be involved for the European Union to respond to its main challenges: competitiveness, youth unemployment, digital economy, urban regeneration, energy efficiency and energy poverty, circular economy, affordable housing, climate change, mobility and connected infrastructure etc.

As a matter of fact, the construction sector is at the heart of our life: construction enterprises and their workers build the homes we live in, the roads on which we travel and the buildings we work or learn in. European citizens spend over 90% of their time indoors, meaning that our health and well-being strongly depends on how our buildings are built, maintained and renovated.

It is within this context that construction stakeholders call upon the European Commission to strengthen the current construction policy setting by creating a new vision for the built environment: “Construction 2050: Building tomorrow’s Europe today”.

To download the Press Release in pdf format, please click here