Confidence in the construction sector remains good despite a slowing in workloads in the last quarter, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

While workload growth slowed slightly, it remains above the average for the long run of Ric's survey, the institution suggests.

And although the slowdown was evenly spread across most of the industry, the public housing sector continued apace by demonstrating the same growth as in the previous quarter.

David Stubbs, senior economist at Rics, remarked: "The immediate outlook for the construction industry is bright.

"With the economy running at almost full capacity and spurring on business investment, the construction boom is steady and sustainable."

Earlier this month, Rics commented on the Bank of England's decision to raise interest rates stating that this would act to dampen the housing market, with first-time buyers finding their borrowing constrained making finding an affordable new home more difficult.