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GBP/USD maintains position around 1.3500 ahead of Q2 US GDP Annualized GBP/USD remains steady after two days of gains, trading around 1.3500 during the Asian hours on Thursday. The pair may further appreciate as the US Dollar (USD) struggles amid rising concerns over the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) independence. Traders await the Q2 US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Annualized due later in the day. Focus will shift toward July Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge. Read more… GBP/USD dips to 1.3457 as Fed turmoil boosts US Dollar rebound GBP/USD drops over 0.16% on Wednesday as the US Dollar (USD) continues to recover some ground, courtesy of the White House’s threats to the independence of the Federal Reserve (Fed), which triggered a rise on the long end of US Treasury bond yields. The pair trades at 1.3457 after slipping from a daily peak of 1.3482. There is a mixed market mood due to rumors that US President Donald Trump fired Fed Governor Lisa Cook, allegedly over allegations of mortgage fraud. Initially, the US Dollar weakened, but it has so far recovered, as depicted by the US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the performance of the US Dollar’s value against a basket of six currencies, up 0.24%, at 98.45. Read more… Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers. The author will not be held responsible for information that is found at the end of links posted on this page. If not otherwise explicitly mentioned in the body of the article, at the time of writing, the author has no position in any stock mentioned in this article and no business relationship with any company mentioned. The author has not received compensation for writing this article, other than from FXStreet. FXStreet and the author do not provide personalized recommendations. The author makes no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of this information. FXStreet and the author will not be liable for any errors, omissions or any losses, injuries or damages arising from this information and its display or use. Errors and omissions excepted. The author and FXStreet are not registered investment advisors and nothing in this article is intended to be investment advice. Read More

Australian Dollar appreciates as Private Capital Expenditure climbed 0.2% in Q2, against the expected 0.7% rise. The AUD gained support after hot Australian inflation data lowered expectations of an RBA rate cut. The CME FedWatch tool indicates pricing in more than 88% odds for a 25 basis-point Fed rate cut in September. The Australian Dollar (AUD) gains ground for the third successive session on Thursday, following the release of Private Capital Expenditure, which rose 0.2% in the second quarter, from the previous decline of 0.1% but falling short of the expected 0.7% increase. The AUD/USD holds ground as the US Dollar (USD) struggles over US Federal Reserve (Fed) concerns. The AUD is also supported by hotter-than-expected Australian inflation data, which reduces expectations of a Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) rate cut. Australia’s Monthly Consumer Price Index jumped by 2.8% year-over-year in July, surpassing a 1.9% increase prior and 2.3% expected growth. China’s chipmakers are seeking to triple the country’s total output of artificial intelligence processors next year, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. Traders are already cautious following US President Donald Trump’s warning of imposing a 200% tariff on Chinese goods if Beijing refuses to supply magnets to the United States (US), per Reuters. It is worth noting that any change in the Chinese economy could influence AUD as China and Australia are close trading partners. Australian Dollar holds ground as US Dollar struggles ahead of GDP The US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the value of the US Dollar against six major currencies, is remaining subdued and trading around 98.10 at the time of writing. Traders await the Q2 US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Annualized due later on Thursday. Focus will shift toward July Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge. US President Donald Trump announced early Tuesday that he was removing Fed Governor Lisa Cook from her position on the Fed’s board of directors. This is considered the first instance of a president firing a central bank governor in the Fed’s 111-year history. The dismissal of Fed Governor Cook could increase the likelihood of heavy interest rate cuts, given Trump’s ongoing pressure on the central bank to reduce borrowing costs. Traders are now pricing in more than 88% odds for a cut of at least a quarter-point at the Fed’s September meeting, up from 82% the previous week, according to the CME FedWatch tool. Trump has already nominated White House economist Stephen Miran to a temporary seat that expires in January and has suggested Miran could also be in the running for Cook’s position. Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reported that David Malpass, former World Bank president, is another potential candidate. President Trump threatened “subsequent additional tariffs” and export restrictions on advanced technology and semiconductors in retaliation for digital services taxes that hit American technology companies, per Bloomberg. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said at the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday that risks to the job market were rising, but also noted inflation remained a threat and that a decision wasn’t set in stone. Powell also stated that the Fed still believes it may not need to tighten policy solely based on uncertain estimates that employment may be beyond its maximum sustainable level. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Minutes of its August monetary policy meeting suggested that board members agreed that some further reduction in the cash rate is likely to be needed in the coming year. RBA Meeting Minutes also indicated that policymakers consider the pace of rate cuts would be determined by incoming data and the balance of global risks. Australian Dollar moves above 0.6500, EMAs The AUD/USD pair is trading around 0.6510 on Thursday. The technical analysis of the daily chart indicates that the pair is positioned slightly above the ascending trendline, suggesting an emergence of a bullish bias. Additionally, the pair is trading above the nine-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA), indicating short-term price momentum is strengthening. On the upside, the AUD/JPY pair may explore the region around the monthly high at 0.6568, reached on August 14, followed by the nine-month high of 0.6625, which was recorded on July 24. The immediate support lies at the psychological level of 0.6500, aligned with the 50-day EMA of 0.6495 and the nine-day EMA of 0.6490. A break below these levels would weaken the medium- and short-term price momentum and put downward pressure to test the ascending trendline around 0.6480. Further declines would prompt the AUD/USD pair to test the two-month low of 0.6414, recorded on August 21. AUD/USD: Daily Chart Australian Dollar Price Today The table below shows the percentage change of Australian Dollar (AUD) against listed major currencies today. Australian Dollar was the strongest against the US Dollar. USD EUR GBP JPY CAD AUD NZD CHF USD -0.03% -0.05% -0.09% -0.03% -0.11% -0.03% -0.13% EUR 0.03% 0.00% -0.07% -0.01% -0.06% 0.01% -0.09% GBP 0.05% -0.01% -0.06% 0.02% -0.06% 0.02% -0.08% JPY 0.09% 0.07% 0.06% 0.10% -0.06% -0.22% -0.01% CAD 0.03% 0.01% -0.02% -0.10% -0.09% 0.00% -0.00% AUD 0.11% 0.06% 0.06% 0.06% 0.09% 0.08% -0.01% NZD 0.03% -0.01% -0.02% 0.22% -0.00% -0.08% -0.09% CHF 0.13% 0.09% 0.08% 0.01% 0.00% 0.01% 0.09% The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Australian Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent AUD (base)/USD (quote). Economic Indicator Gross Domestic Product Annualized The real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Annualized, released quarterly by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis, measures the value of the final goods and services produced in the United States in a given period of time. Changes in GDP are the most popular indicator of the nation’s overall economic health. The data is expressed at an annualized rate, which means that the rate has been adjusted to reflect the

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. It’s not yet Halloween, but things in the HR world could be summed up as “spooky,” Zach Nunn, CEO of experience management firm Living Corporate, told HR Dive. U.S. organizations have asked their HR teams to conduct a record number of layoffs this year — often doing so multiple times throughout the course of 2025 in a “serial” fashion, according to a recent Careerminds survey. But while organizations focus on cutting costs through attrition, they also are deprioritizing investments in current staff, according to Nunn. “The reality is that people initiatives are just not being invested in,” he said. “What we’re seeing is a large-scale divestment from the employee experience in the day-to-day work, and that’s a scary place to be in, because if we’re not going to be investing in people, how do we create healthy experiences for customers?” HR professionals are feeling squeezed, too, according to a SHRM’s 2025 State of the Workplace report published in March. The association found that 62% of professionals were working beyond their capacity, and 57% said their departments were understaffed. Industry analysts expected that 2025 would bring its share of challenges, from the push to adopt artificial intelligence, reframe DEI playbooks and adapt talent operations to market fluctuations. More than halfway through the year, those predictions are largely holding true, sources who spoke to HR Dive said, though some trends have taken a few unexpected turns. CEO of NVIDIA Jensen Huang speaks with Trump administration officials during the “Winning the AI Race” summit at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium on July 23, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Cracks have begun to show in workplace artificial intelligence adoption, sources told HR Dive. Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images The AI hype cycle hits some roadblocks After years of hype, AI has become increasingly mainstream at work, with a May Owl Labs report finding that 67% of companies integrated AI tools into their organizations for work-related purposes. But there are cracks beginning to show on the adoption front as employers struggle to find good use cases for the technology, said Emily Rose McRae, senior director analyst at Gartner. A common sticking point is that workers simply don’t have the knowledge to properly use AI, which necessitates additional training. But when leadership teams go to HR with a request to improve training or build employee skill sets to better take advantage of AI, “that is unfortunately not terribly realistic,” McRae said, because the learning curve involved is often too steep. Generative AI adoption faces other barriers from unclear use cases to meager productivity gains — some vendor estimates show that while the tech can save users minutes of work in a typical day, the tools “don’t have a drastic impact on productivity,” McRae said. As a result, executives are looking to HR to not only identify good use cases for AI but also to upskill workers to ensure uptake is possible in the first place. “That is really a tricky spot to be in,” McRae said. “HR has a responsibility around training, but it also has a role in reshaping executives’ expectations and getting people to reimagine the outcomes that are possible.” By the numbers 95% Percentage of enterprise generative AI pilot programs with no measurable profit-or-loss impact, according to an MIT report 40% Percentage of agentic AI projects that could be cancelled by the end of 2027 due to costs, unclear business value or inadequate risk controls, per Gartner As if to underscore these difficulties, a recent MIT report found that the vast majority of enterprise generative AI pilot programs, 95%, had no measurable profit-or-loss impact on their organizations. The report’s findings don’t mean that AI has no impactful use cases, McRae said, but they do show that identifying the correct use cases may not be as easy as vendors would have HR believe. In the near-term future, she added, HR will need to specify what goals AI is being used to achieve within the organization, whether this is employee adoption, participation training or some other metric. “Ultimately, you have to figure out what stakeholders want in the short term [and] set it against your longer-term goals, which might mean resetting expectations.” This is also likely to mean that HR will need to work across departments, including with information technology and individual team leads, to determine how AI can best be of use to employees or choose existing resources that could better fulfill certain goals than AI. Nunn said company expectations around AI present their own hurdles. AI can contribute to business strategy and processes in much the same way as a college intern might, he added, but the push by organizations to outsource departments wholesale to the tech is likely unrealistic given AI’s limitations. “Unfortunately, we’re seeing large-scale applications of AI when it comes sourcing, recruiting and background checks — essentially seeing whole HR departments being replaced by one bot,” Nunn said. “It’s not to say that AI doesn’t have a role in HR processes — a lot of what we see as HR is very transactional, repetitive and monotonous — but it is to say that there’s an opportunity for organizations to, instead of wholly replacing people, to upgrade the role, not necessarily replace the role.” There are some signs that organizations have begun to recognize that reality. Nunn pointed to 2024’s news that McDonald’s rolled back its plan to implement AI cashiers in its drive-thrus as an example, while Gartner published research earlier this year showing that some 40% of agentic AI projects could be cancelled by the end of 2027 due to costs, unclear business value or inadequate risk controls. Nunn said it’s natural for companies to overindex on technology trends, but there is still a need to figure out what AI’s real value proposition is. “The scary part is that, while we’re fighting that out in real time, we’re seeing human beings be negatively impacted,” he added, referencing

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. When Jaime Garcia was working on construction jobsites, he saw multiple Spanish speaking tradesworkers on the jobsite who did not receive the proper safety training in their native language.  “The amount of people that took the training but did not understand the training was massive. It was a huge gap,” said Garcia, who worked as an electrician and safety manager. When he urged leaders and subcontractors to conduct classes in Spanish, he was told there was no time for that. “I’m like, ‘Hmm, we need to train them, big time. We’re going to get someone hurt or killed out here,’” he said. As a result, in 2020, Garcia founded All-In Safety Professionals, a Raleigh, North Carolina-based firm offering bilingual safety training.  “We had a lot of subcontractors that I knew that needed training,” Garcia said. “They were just showing up to these places, somebody would collect their money, sit them in their class talking English. They play one or two videos and sign a card and dip. And I didn’t like that.” The number of Hispanic or Latino workers in all industries who died on the job increased 42%, to 727 from 2011 to 2021, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In that time, the percentage of construction workers who were Hispanic or Latino who died at work also steadily increased.  “We know without a doubt that it’s massively impactful to the safety of and wellbeing of these workers, but also then to the safety and efficiency of all of these operations as well as from a damage and delay standpoint,” said Loretta Mulberry, a language access consultant.  In addition, that language barrier, or lack of resources, can create a system that holds back great workers, Mulberry said. That’s a disadvantage to both the business and the individual. “It’s either ‘I don’t have the language skills to pass this English test,’ or ‘I am too self-conscious. I’m too nervous about my lack of English to get after that opportunity,’” she said. “So you see it from both sides. People are holding themselves back, but also the system is holding them back too.” For a long time, experts say, the “no-time” attitude has pervaded around providing extra education or resources, though that’s beginning to change. However, Garcia and Mulberry still believe more can be done. Translation and interpretation Often, one member of a working crew — the person who speaks the best English — steps up as a de facto interpreter. In addition to doing other work on the jobsite, that interpreter communicates with crews about any and all important information from the general contractor. Though that role is vital, it also should require additional training, according to Mulberry. “Speaking a language is not the same thing as being qualified to do translation and interpreting,” Mulberry said. “The skills are not the same.” In fact, translation refers to the act of copying language in written form, while interpretation is done verbally. Each case requires both specificity and nuance.  In addition, not every person who speaks Spanish speaks the same kind of Spanish. A single jobsite could feature workers from Mexico, Cuba, Honduras, Puerto Rico or other Hispanic regions that have differences in dialect, small or large.  Mulberry said she sees firsthand how much people want the most important information to be communicated as familiarly as possible.  “Anecdotally, you talk to anybody who’s ever studied a second language, even being very comfortable, fluent in their second language, and you ask them, ‘If your life were on the line, what would you want this information in English, Spanish, Polish, whatever it may be?’ People will always say, ‘My native language,’” she said. Speaking my language All-In Safety Professionals focuses on meeting with subcontractors that don’t already have a dedicated safety professional, Garcia said. Those roles can be expensive, especially when potentially hiring someone who is bilingual.  As a result, the firm provides training with physical examples, before it monitors workers in the field to answer questions and ensure the effectiveness of the education. “Most of these people already work with their hands. They’re going to learn with their hands as well,” he said. Before All-In, Garcia said he pushed for an additional orientation for Spanish speakers. For major projects, a single orientation day can get workers on the same page. Conducting an additional orientation — one workers would need anyway — in Spanish provides education without adding too much more time. In Mulberry’s experience, safety professionals often take whatever they can get. Most often, that means company training manuals or jobsite signage translated into multiple languages. “The number one request we get is for [translated] employee handbooks,” she said.  Monique Lewis, CEO and founder of Raleigh-based Next 2 Native Language Learning, takes a different approach to climbing over the language barrier. Lewis’ firm provides English to Spanish construction vocabulary training in each direction, providing superintendents and field workers alike the tools necessary to communicate. “When you have a Hispanic worker on site and they have a near miss, they need to be able to unpack that. They need to be able to say to their supervisor, ‘This almost happened,’” Lewis said. Otherwise, hazards may go unabated. Though signs and handbooks may be useful tools for communicating with workers, it’s a one-way street. Giving teams the tools to converse provides a feedback loop and extra methods of sharing vital information around safety. Training with baby steps Mulberry said she knows requests for additional training come down to budgeting and time. It’s tough for safety leaders to fight for funds. Instead, including another department, like human resources, can be an effective way to start. That’s why translated handbooks can create a place to begin. “That’s always a good starting point because the safety folks can agree on it with the HR folks,” Mulberry said. “Everybody can agree that the employee handbook is the best place to start.” Lewis says she tells

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. Real work starts long before contractors hit shovels to the ground, especially on billion-dollar megaprojects. Lisa Stalteri, partner at Kansas City, Missouri-based law firm Lathrop GPM, knows this firsthand. She focuses on some of the country’s largest infrastructure and private development deals, typically ranging from $300 million to $500 million or more. For example, Stalteri is currently advising on a $3 billion airport project slated to span five years. Based in Lathrop GPM’s Redwood City, California, office, Stalteri has nearly 25 years experience in commercial real estate transactions and environmental law. She counsels clients in all areas of commercial real estate and its operation, including leasing, financing, construction and acquisitions and dispositions. That role gives her a close view of how owners and contractors are working through today’s volatile construction environment. Here, Stalteri talks with Construction Dive about risk allocation, cost escalation and negotiation. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. CONSTRUCTION DIVE: On large, multiyear projects, what’s the first thing you look for in a contract to manage risk? LISA STALTERI: For any construction project, particularly large multiyear projects, effective project management is more critical in managing risk than any contract provision. Lisa Stalteri Permission granted by Lathrop GPM In my experience, the construction manager at risk delivery method can be very effective for large, multiyear projects, if permitted by applicable law. So, I would first check if that was the type of contract being used. In the CMAR project delivery model, the construction manager is involved early in the design phase, collaborating closely with the project owner, architects and engineers to provide input on design, costs and constructability. That allows for better cost control and project management, as the construction manager can make more informed decisions on materials, labor and methods. During the construction phase, the construction manager acts as the general contractor, taking on the risk of completing the project within a guaranteed maximum price. On large projects spanning multiple years, I anticipate that risks will occur, such as changes in law, material price escalation, labor shortages and delivery delays. So, the first thing I look for in a contract is whether there are provisions that reasonably allocate risks and provide a timely and meaningful dispute resolution process. That might include a material price escalation clause and a clear change order process. The goal for all participants is a successful project. If the contract sets forth a zero-sum game, it increases the risk of an unsuccessful project due to such things as default, insolvency and eventually litigation. How are owners handling cost escalation clauses in today’s market? The pandemic led to widespread adoption of material price escalation clauses. The uncertainty created today by fluctuating tariffs, labor shortages and supply chain disruptions, has again brought material price escalation clauses to the forefront, particularly for large, multiyear private sector projects. A typical material escalation clause provides a contractor with the right to a change order if a significant price change for material occurs after signing. That’s usually tied to a threshold percentage increase and often includes a cap on the amount an owner has to absorb. Sometimes there’s a commensurate savings clause if a material price decreases, too. Parts of the contract up for negotiation are the trigger percentage change in price and whether that’s tied to an index or to cost at time of contracting. The documentation required to demonstrate the change is also laid out. In my experience, these negotiated elements are project specific, rather than set by trends in the industry. A negotiated material price escalation clause can make agreement easier over other risk allocation provisions, such as force majeure, contingency, allowance and change orders. If you had one piece of advice for these types of megaprojects today, what would it be? My one piece of advice would be to reevaluate the economics to determine if it makes sense to start construction or delay it. Abandonment of construction projects in the private sector is nearing a multiyear high, particularly in California, due to high interest rates, fluctuating tariffs, potential material price increases and construction labor shortages. Data has indicated that construction in the public sector has shown greater stability. How has the balance of risk between owners and contractors shifted in the past year? The shift is mixed. Given the decrease in private sector construction, owners who proceed with projects generally have a strong bargaining position, and some owners continue to take the zero-sum game approach to risk allocation because they can. On the other hand, given the current economic uncertainty because of fluctuating tariffs, material price escalation, labor shortages and supply chain disruptions, some owners are realizing that the lowest bid may reflect an offer that a contractor actually cannot deliver. As a result, some owners are placing greater emphasis on a contractor’s creditworthiness and track record. In these situations, I am seeing owners take an approach to risk allocation that is focused on the delivery of a successful project, rather than a zero-sum game approach. Read More

An article from Project Wins Construction Dive rounds up the newest project wins from some of the country’s biggest builders including Kiewit, Gilbane and Clark. Published Aug. 28, 2025 Rendering of the Interborough Express, a planned light rail line that will connect the Brooklyn and Queens boroughs of New York City. An HDR and Jacobs JV won the $166 million project. Courtesy of New York Governor’s Office Landing a new building job is the lifeblood of the contracting business. After months of estimating, preparing and presenting a bid, or countless hours securing meetings with the right officials and community stakeholders, there’s nothing quite like getting the nod that the job is yours.  Here, Construction Dive tracks the top contract wins announced by some of the country’s biggest builders in August, including a $700 million airport rehab in Memphis, a $1.97B subway contract in New York City and even President Donald Trump’s $200 million White House ballroom project. Have an award you want to tell us about? Email the Construction Dive editors. Read More

An article from Dive Brief The new rule directing federal agencies to align awards with Trump’s policies threatens health, safety and infrastructure projects, cities and counties say. The Trump administration’s executive order is intended to streamline and strengthen oversight and coordination of the federal discretionary grantmaking process. Olivier Le Moal via Getty Images First published on Dive Brief:  The Trump administration issued an executive order this month intended to streamline and strengthen oversight and coordination of the federal discretionary grantmaking process. The order directs federal agencies to review grant awards to ensure they meet the administration’s “priorities and the national interest” and assess their progress each year. It will also simplify the language on grant application questions, select applications that “advance the President’s policy priorities” and require agencies to reform their policies so the agencies can terminate grants that don’t meet the administration’s interests.  Lobbying groups representing local and county governments say they believe the administration’s new policies could make obtaining grants more challenging.  Dive Insight: The Aug. 7 executive order, Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking, is the latest of several Trump administration actions to block federal money from going to recipients or funding work that do not align with the Trump administration’s priorities.  The order takes aim at what the administration describes as “diversity, equity, and inclusion and other far-left initiatives.” It directs agencies to select discretionary grant applications that advance the Trump administration’s policy priorities and avoid projects that support race or gender, undocumented immigration and the existence of transgender people.  It also encourages providing grant funds to a broad range of recipients “rather than to a select group of repeat players.” Grant recipients will need to submit “written explanations or support, with specificity” before drawing down funds for each award.  The National Association of Counties, in an Aug. 19 post, stated that counties depend on federal grant funds to support a range of priorities including social services, health programs, public safety, disaster response and infrastructure investments.  “Changes to federal grant policy, especially ones that apply retroactively, may create unintended administrative or financial consequences when implementing these programs,” the organization stated.  A spokesperson for the National League of Cities said in an email that it is reviewing the full impact of the executive order on cities. The organization said it agrees the grantmaking process could be improved, but the executive order “adds to the bureaucratic process with more political reviews and another update to the Uniform Guidance which underpins all grants.” The spokesperson added that the executive order falsely asserts that grants already in process “can be partially or fully terminated without a substantial cause.” That move, the NLC stated, is “counter to Congress’ Constitutional power of the purse.” The NLC is trying to help cities overcome complex grant processes by training small and large communities to apply for and manage federal grants, the organization stated.  County leaders, meanwhile, are urging Congress and the administration to not cancel or freeze previously awarded funds and “support the stability and continued funding of critical projects and programs that have been properly approved, allocated and distributed,” NACO wrote. Read More

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has put aside £1.1bn of contracts to restart stalled projects in its prison building programme – including two major ex-ISG jobs. The cash is meant to get 14 construction work packages up and running at 32 prisons and courts across the UK under the ministry’s Contingency Response Programme (CRP), Construction News can reveal. So far, the MoJ has appointed contractors on £684.3m-worth of jobs from the £1.1bn package. ISG’s collapse last September stalled major projects across the UK – including MoJ prison revamps at HMP Birmingham, HMP Liverpool and HMP Guys Marsh. The £2.2bn-turnover contractor was also working on multiple expansion projects at other prisons and MoJ sites as part of the additional 20,000 prison places delivery programme. The MoJ has now appointed at least seven major contractors to take on some of that work, including ISG’s £150.7m job to build new houseblocks at HMP Birmingham, which has gone to Galliford Try. The CRP also includes some prison and court maintenance works which have no link to ISG. CN understands the CRP will include at least 14 packages of work. Over the past three months, the MoJ has awarded contracts worth a combined £684.3m to Bovis Construction, Willmott Dixon, Galliford Try, Bowmer & Kirkland, Tilbury Douglas, Henry Boot Construction and Henry Brothers. No data is available on three of the CRP packages (1, 12 and 13) and work on at least seven packages is yet to be handed out – including five where work should have started in March (see full list of projects below). Those include two of ISG’s flagship prison projects. The £149.3m job to build new houseblocks at HMP Guys Marsh (pictured) does not yet have a contractor – and also includes funds to upgrade utilities including sewage screening, showers, CCTV, fire mains and district heating at HMPs Dartmoor, Bullingdon, Leyhill and Channings Wood. The MoJ is also yet to name a contractor on a £121.1m job to build houseblocks at HMP Liverpool, as well as work on accommodation blocks, fire safety work, wall repairs and damp proofing at HMPs Wymott, Erlestoke, Risley and Preston. It is not clear how long it will take to contract out the additional projects. The MoJ declined to comment when CN asked for information on the CRP projects that had not been tendered out yet. As well as being awarded the HMP Birmingham job, Galliford Try will also complete additional minor works across HMPs Prescoed, Sudbury, Swaleside, Cardiff, Swansea and Usk as part of the £150.7m contract. The contractor scooped the project last month, and the contract will come to an end in February 2030. Following ISG’s collapse last year, the MoJ “actioned its contingency response” to work out how much construction work had been completed on each of its projects – with the aim of restarting work “as soon as possible”, the MoJ said in detailed tender documents. It warned that ISG’s collapse came “at a time when prison and court capacity, including protection of existing capacity and creation of new capacity, remains critical”. Among the biggest contracts already handed out are a £237.5m job awarded to Bovis Construction to deliver new housing blocks at HMPs Hatfield, Leyhill, Ford and Standford Hill. Bovis started work on the project last month, and has until January 2029 to finish the work. Bowmer & Kirkland, meanwhile, was awarded a £154m job in June to refurbish two wings at HMP Wymott, alongside some maintenance works at HMPs Coldingley, Kirkham and Foston Hall. Work is set to finish in December 2027. Tilbury Douglas snapped up a £64.5m job to complete “design and construction works at multiple unnamed prison and court sites across England, where securing and expanding capacity has been deemed urgent”. The contract runs until June 2031. Henry Brothers also scooped a £13.3m job – package 11 – but it is not clear from the government procurement documents which prisons it will be working on. The contract will run from 10 June 2025 to 30 September 2027. CN approached Henry Brothers for comment, but did not hear back by the time of publication. CRP categories The MoJ has divided the CRP projects into three categories, with categories two and three focusing on jobs that ISG was working on before it went under. Category two covers jobs where ISG had completed between 10 and 50 per cent of the design work, according to the MoJ. ISG jobs where design work was completed and construction work had commenced, meanwhile, are in category three. That suggests jobs including its expansion projects at Liverpool, Guys Marsh and Birmingham are all in category three. Rather than a standard fixed-price contract, contractors appointed to former ISG jobs will receive “cost reimbursable contracts”, covering all the project costs they incur plus an additional fee. The MoJ also detailed the process moving forward for the former ISG jobs. Contractors appointed to them will need to start with a “validation stage” to establish what work can be done without additional design work and to inspect all the construction work that has been completed. Category one jobs include jobs that ISG was not involved in. A spokesperson for the MoJ said the government had already delivered 2,500 new prison spaces with 14,000 others scheduled for delivery by 2031 in “the largest expansion of prison places since the Victorian era.” They added: “We have launched a procurement process and are moving forward with new suppliers.” Galliford Try, Henry Boot and Willmott Dixon declined to comment. CN also approached Bovis Construction, Bowmer & Kirkland, Tilbury Douglas and Henry Brothers for comment. Read More

Work to repair part of a Glasgow motorway has been delayed again, with the client blaming “inaccurate records of utility apparatus”. Amey’s work on the M8 Woodside Viaducts will not be complete until the second half of 2027, Transport Scotland announced today (28 August) — four years later than planned. It follows the discovery of a sewer in a different place to that expected. The contractor is working on a scheme to prop and renew the structures, which were completed in 1971. A planned refurbishment in 2021 found the viaduct crossheads were in a much worse condition than expected. In February 2022 it was announced that the job would be completed in November 2023. Transport Scotland has already announced two prior delays, including in May 2024 when it said the work was more challenging than initially thought. Work remaining to be completed includes the strengthening of triangular crossheads, which support the viaducts at their western end, and associated propping steelwork, both of which have been more complicated than anticipated, Transport Scotland said. The statement added that discovering a sewer close to a subway tunnel, in a different place to where it had been expected, had introduced an unusual level of complexity and resulted in delays to propping both the eastbound and westbound viaducts. “This has slowed progress to the temporary propping in this location and, despite mitigation measures already in place, is impacting the completion of the westbound viaduct propping,” it added. Transport Scotland director of major projects Lawrence Shackman said: “I’d like to thank everyone for their patience and understanding to date and assure them that Transport Scotland continues to robustly engage with the contractor, Amey, to deliver the work as quickly and safely as possible, while keeping the motorway open to the 150,000 vehicles who use it daily.” He said the project had made “substantial progress” with temporary props installed at 13 out of 23 locations, with 10 of those having been jacked to support the carriageway. “The location of the motorway through a busy, built-up city has meant this project has always been technically complex and presented a number of challenges, notwithstanding dealing with 23 supports that all require individual propping designs to take account of the varying column heights, span lengths and widths,” he added. “The project has been continuously hampered by inaccurate records of utility apparatus as well as the recent discovery of an uncharted sewer buried deep underground leading to delays and additional work.” The eastbound carriageway is now due to open in autumn 2026 with the westbound carriageway due to follow in the second half of 2027. Last week, Frances Ratcliffe, Transport Scotland’s bridge manager for M8 Woodside Viaducts, told Construction News’ sister title New Civil Engineer that the emergency nature of the works meant site investigations and design  had to be carried out after traffic restrictions were implemented. “It is not unusual for a project of this scale to be a number of years in the planning before coming to site,” she said. Read More

Kier was the biggest contractor for the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) for the second year in a row, Construction News can reveal. The company was paid £269.9m in the financial year 2024/25, down slightly from the £294m it earned in 2023/24 (see box below for full list). Kier’s work for the department in the period included delivering HMP Millsike in North Yorkshire (pictured), the UK’s first all-electric prison. The £400m Category C institution, built to house 1,500 inmates, is the size of 39 football pitches and is powered by more than 8,500kWh of renewable energy. CN visited the facility ahead of its opening in March, to examine how challenges such as clearing the ground of hundreds of pieces of live ammunition left from the site’s former use as an RAF base were overcome, with the project delivered on time and on budget. Elsewhere it is working on prison jobs in Glasgow, Elmley in Kent, and Channings Wood in Devon, where it is due to break ground on 28 August. Wates was the second biggest supplier to the MoJ, earning £218.5m in the period, a huge increase on the £67.4m it achieved in 2023/24, when it was the fourth largest contractor. Its jobs included work on the ministry’s houseblocks upgrade programme. It and Kier jointly won a £500m contract for the project in 2022. Wates and Kier are part of the MoJ’s Alliance 4 New Prisons (A4NP) alongside seventh-placed Laing O’Rourke. ISG was originally part of the alliance, which was set up in 2021 to deliver new prisons. ISG was the third largest supplier to the ministry in the period, despite it only being in business for five months of the financial year. The contractor was paid £63.9m for work across a number of projects, including HMP Guys Marsh in Dorset. It was set to deliver 17 per cent of the government’s targeted 20,000 new prison places before it went under. In January it was revealed that its collapse would cost the MoJ an estimated £300m on its New Prisons Programme. The contractor was also carrying out remediation work on 23,000 existing cells that do not meet fire-safety requirements. As reported by CN today (28 August), the MoJ has set aside at least £1.1bn to get 14 construction jobs – many of them former ISG projects – up and running imminently. Contracts have already been picked up by the likes of Bovis Construction (formerly Lendlease), Willmott Dixon, Galliford Try, Bowmer & Kirkland, Tilbury Douglas, Henry Boot Construction and Henry Brothers. CN also revealed last week that six subcontractors on ISG projects were threatening the MoJ with legal action after failing to be paid for work on jobs that were covered by project bank accounts (PBAs). The group said they were left out of pocket despite PBAs being in operation at HMPs Birmingham, Liverpool and Guys Marsh. A PBA is a ringfenced bank account from which payments are meant to be made directly and simultaneously to a lead contractor and members of the supply chain. The firms said they had expected to receive money for work – signed off by quantity surveyors – that was carried out in the months running up to ISG’s collapse. But the MoJ told them no funds were available, instead referring the companies to ISG’s administrators at EY. One subcontractor, who said his firm was owed almost £200,000 for completed work, said when he found out: “I felt like I’d fallen off a cliff. There’s no value you can put on the emotional rollercoaster you go through when it’s that sort of money.” The ministry has refused to comment. MoJ contractor spend 2024-25 Position Supplier name Total paid (£m) 1 Kier Construction  269.9 2 Wates Construction  218.5 3 ISG Construction  63.9 4 Galliford Try  63.7 5 Lendlease Construction (now Bovis)  52.4 6 Vinci Construction UK  39.1 7 Laing O’Rourke  20.5 8 Tilbury Douglas Construction  11.9 9 Algeco UK  8.3 10 Henry Boot Construction  3.6 11 Extraspace  3.0 Read More