Even from the continuing business alone, Skanska UK booked an operating profit of £34m in 2021, up from £12m previously on stable revenue of  £1.1bn.

It also confirmed in latest accounts published at Companies House that operating margins had been restored to a targetted 3%.

Skanska closed 2021 with £1.3bn of orders, supported by £520m of cash placing it in a strong position for growth.

As part of the firm’s new 2024 business plan, the goal is that every project must hit or beat tender margin, delivering an operating margin of 3% or greater.

The new plan aims for greater market penetration, aiming to increase Skanska’s share of work in its most successful sectors and grow revenues with existing customers.

Outgoing finance director Kelly Gangotra said that Skanska was focused on five key areas to deliver better project performance: The right people; design control; understanding and applying the deal, quality; forecasting and reporting.