APM's response to UK 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy

The UK Government has published a new 10-year strategy that sets out its long-term plan for economic, housing and social infrastructure to drive growth.

UK Infrastructure: A 10 Year Strategy sets out this long-term approach, backed by at least £725 billion of government funding for infrastructure over the next decade. The strategy covers economic and social infrastructure for the first time.

Commenting on the report, Andrew Baldwin, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at APM, said: “APM’s General Election manifesto called for three key asks– Respond, Reinvent, Reform. The Government has already delivered on respond, and this strategy goes a long way to delivering on reinvent and reform.

“Businesses want a clear, long-term vision for infrastructure development, providing certainty about future projects and policy. And major projects such as those outlined in the government’s recent Spending Review need political and economic stability to work – investors need to trust that their investment will be worthwhile. 

"The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority will need support to deliver this plan, so we’re keen to see how the good work of its predecessor, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, in improving project delivery, is maintained and improved upon. But the focus on the service maintenance backlog is good to see and shows a commitment to the service transformation part of the Authority’s name, as well as the infrastructure part covered in the Spending Review. Changes to the Green Book are welcome, as is the commitment to transparent reporting as demonstrated by the online infrastructure pipeline and longer term spending review cycles.

“This Strategy provides more clarity and certainty on how it’s going to invest in the people tasked to deliver its infrastructure ambitions, and build on the skills and capability needed for them to succeed.”

UK Infrastructure: A 10 Year Strategy is available to view on the Gov.uk website