Re: Hardly surprising.
My experience would confirm this. We had a mild winter last, mild and wet here in Dundee and for the first time since we moved in here mid '99 I did not have to deal with a queen wasp trying to nest in our shed. When we moved in there was an apricot/plum sized nest hanging from the ridge beam.
Worst was the spring after a really hard winter when I was dealing with the nascent nest on the roof beam when I realised there was another, more established nest in the wall above the door, right behind me.
This winter seems to shaping up for a hard one so the wasp killer spray will get deployed again next spring.
In the summer if I'm in the back garden in the suburban quiet I can often hear a rasping sound which turns out to be a wasp chewing wood from one of the fenceposts. So long as the nest the paper is destined for isn't in my shed or garage I let them be.
I'm not surprised they target our shed. It is light, dry and out of the wind and the inside is ALL wood and unpainted or finished. A wasp paradise.