New investment can transform the UK's infrastructure and support the economy but in the past the UK has not focused sufficiently on ensuring the swift and efficient delivery of major infrastructure projects. Too many projects have been blocked or delayed due to poor coordination, planning and regulatory hold ups, and a lack of clear leadership from the Government. This often holds back not only the project concerned but also wider private sector developments that can create jobs and attract further investment.
To put an end to these failings, the Government has identified 40 infrastructure projects and programmes that are of national significance and critical for growth and has put in place a robust plan to ensure their delivery. A new Cabinet Committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, will provide leadership to this work. Chapter 2 sets out more detail. This focus on delivery has:
• enabled eight major projects around the country to proceed since the summer, including the A1 at Elkesley and seven electricity generation projects that are collectively worth £4bn but were held up by delays in receiving planning approval;
• led to a commitment to build a new crossing across the Lower Thames, with the Government launching analysis of three options to inform a consultation in 2013. The Government will also explore the options for tackling pressures at Junction 30 of the M25 and on the A13 corridor as part of that analysis; and
• supported the development of the London Gateway port, which is forecast to create 12,000 jobs by helping the developer identify sufficient traffic management measures that, once formalised, will enable the next phase to proceed within a variation to the existing planning consent.
These clear actions and ongoing ministerial focus will help resolve barriers holding back important projects. But the Government is clear that specific problems encountered by individual projects often have deeper, more systemic roots. The Infrastructure Cost Review, published in December 2010, found that there is a clear opportunity to realise savings of £20 to £30 billion over the next decade from improving the delivery of infrastructure. There has also been insufficient attention focused on the opportunities and risks presented by interdependencies between infrastructure networks. The Government is taking action in a range of areas to address this.