The ONS has opened a window on the construction industry that goes to show how it works to its own rules. And how dependent it is on the public sector.

The figures for 2018 reveal that the value of new work across the industry reached its highest level on record at £113.1bn. This was driven by growth in public sector work of £2.7bn. The private sector only accounted for £750m of the increase.

However, while its backlog of work meant the industry was booming, new orders fell by 13.2%, or £9.3bn, the first annual decline in growth seen since 2011. We have seen this year that the fall in new orders translated into a long recession in the sector.