Time for the industry to deliver on government infrastructure plans

Peter Campbell
28 May 2015

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ACE senior policy manager Peter Campbell considers the implications of the Queen’s Speech and finds that consistency and stability on infrastructure policy bode well for the industry

So, there we have it. The first all-Conservative Queen’s Speech since 1996, words that not even the most positive of party supporters could have hoped to hear.

In a blaze of pageantry and regalia, David Cameron and George Osborne, via Her Majesty The Queen, had the chance to outline a legislative agenda based on their manifesto without the interference of the Liberal Democrat, UKIP, DUP, or any other potential coalition.

And on the one hand, the infrastructure sector had good cause to feel a little neglected or hard done by when it came to the bills announced. Out of some two-dozen pieces of upcoming legislation, only two could be said to be relevant to the industry and one, the HS2 bill, was carried over from the previous parliament in any case.

"There is a potential positive to take from the very absence of any major new bills, despite manifesto commitments on Crossrail 2, HS3, and major plans to increase housebuilding."

On the other hand, however, there is a potential positive to take from the very absence of any major new bills, despite manifesto commitments on Crossrail 2, HS3, and major plans to increase housebuilding. It suggests that the government is not also thinking about changing too much about what has been passed by parliament during the Coalition years.

And this is to be celebrated. For years, industry has been calling on successive governments to resist the temptation to enter government and cut projects or reduce funding. Stability and certainty have been the watch words for our sector for so long, perhaps the government is finally taking them to heart!

In addition, a relatively light programme as far as infrastructure is concerned is also a reflection on how the task for the industry has fundamentally changed since 2010. Today, the challenge is on the construction sector to deliver on what has already been brought forward, through the roads investment strategy, electricity market reform, and other measures passed in the last Parliament.

Several measures were announced, however, that will have direct implications for the engineering world. Devolution is high on the agenda, with four pieces of legislation coming that will fundamentally impact the powers and responsibilities local, regional, and devolved authorities will have over delivery of the UK’s networks.

"The issues of late payment is also ...something that will be of interest to the industry and that ACE will monitor"

Two other bills of potential interest to members are a Full Employments and Welfare Benefits Bill and an Enterprise Bill. These aim to help achieve full employment and reduce regulation on small businesses so they can create jobs. The issues of late payment is also expected to form part of the latter, something that will be of interest to the industry and that ACE will monitor as the bill progresses through its stages.

We will now wait for the full details of all these bills to emerge over the coming weeks and months, and what events crop up to which the government feels it needs to respond. In the meantime, there are some unexpected positives that industry, like Conservative supporters, can take from amongst all the crowns and commandments.