Residential
Several of Britain's biggest housing construction firms reported increases in output over the course of 2015, with Taylor Wimpey experiencing a seven per cent increase in completions, Persimmon a rise of eight per cent and Barratt over nine per cent.
Barratt has also announced it is to increase the number of new homes it builds in Scotland this year.
The Welsh Assembly planning inspector has given the green light to Cardiff City Council's plan to build 40,000 new homes by 2026 to deal with rapid population growth, including controversial plans to construct 13,000 on the green northern fringe of the city.
A development that is definitely going ahead is the construction of an urban village of 800 homes on the site of an old mill in the Canton district in the west of the city.
Chelmsford is another city considering plans for more homes, with 14,000 proposed.
The government is seeking to free up more land for housebuilding by putting 80 surplus public sector sites on the market.
Around 5,000 new homes will be built at these locations and another 40 sites will be made available over the next 18 months.
Infrastructure
Work has begun on the Ordsall Chord rail link in central Manchester, which will make it possible for trains to run between the city's three main stations for the first time.
The link will loop around on the western edge of the city centre to connect the line from Piccadilly and Oxford Road stations with Victoria.
Work started this month after a legal challenge against the project was defeated in court in December.
Highways England has revealed its preferred option for a new Thames crossing between Kent and Essex.
It has rejected the option of a second Dartford crossing in favour of a new tunnel that will run from a point just east of Gravesend on the Kent side up to Tilbury.
The road will link with the end of the M2 in Kent and connect with the M25 in Essex between the present Junction 29 and Junction 30.
Work is to begin shortly on a number of bridge repairs following recent floods.
Government cash will be used to provide temporary bridges at locations such as Elland and Tadcaster in Yorkshire, while repairs to the crossings take place.
Commercial
Birmingham has just recorded its highest level of commercial construction in 13 years.
The latest Deloitte Crane Survey revealed 969,000 sq ft of commercial space was under construction in the city in 2015, with 732,000 sq ft delivered in the first three quarters of the year.
It marks a significant rise for the city in comparison with normal levels of activity and is in contrast with the all-time low of 14,000 sq ft, which came as recently as 2013.
Another notable development was the fact that most new building is now taking place in the core of the city centre, whereas previously much of the development was taking place on the periphery of the centre in districts such as Edgbaston and Digbeth.
Manchester is set for a new tallest building after developer CQ Investments published plans for four new skyscrapers, with the tallest one being 64 storeys high.
It has been designed by architects Simpson Haugh and Partners, which is behind the Beetham Tower, the tallest mancunian building at present.
Swansea is another city set for transformation, with the council unveiling plans for two sites that include a new aquarium and an indoor arena for exhibitions and concerts.
Oil and Gas
Britain needs to speed up construction of a new generation of gas-fired power stations to help tackle a shortfall in energy supply, a new report has said.
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers has produced a report titled Engineering the UK's Electricity Gap, which argues the shut-down of old nuclear and all coal power stations by 2025 could leave the country with a supply that is up to 40 per cent less than peak demand.
It said the coalition government had not done enough to encourage new power station building and Britain does not have the skills to close the gap now.
The report said one measure that can be taken is to speed up progress on shale gas exploration, warning that Britain
