Comment

Message from the editor | Issue 05 | October 14

Antony Oliver, Infrastructure Intelligence editor

The message coming out of Treasury via Lord Deighton is clear – government support for infrastructure investment has never been higher.

Infrastructure “acts as a key enabler for future economic development, driving broader growth and regeneration’ he says in his interview with Infrastructure Intelligence this month. “My focus has always been on delivery”.

Industry headlines this month in many ways justify his claim as we continue to see projects move from pipedreams towards reality. 

This month we saw the £43bn High Speed 2 project launch its presence to the market with two industry days designed to gear the supply chain up for real contracts; the £4bn Thames Tideway Tunnel project clear a major planning milestone; and the £16bn Hinkley Point C scheme leap forward with European approval for its financing deal.

In terms of efficiency of delivery, reduction in cost, building capability and decarbonising the built environment, the UK still lags behind the global best

All of this activity serves to underline the genuine confidence now flowing from government through developers and on towards investors that the UK is a good place to invest for the long term and that infrastructure projects can now be delivered in realistic timeframes.

But, and there always is a “but”, as Deighton also makes clear, across the entire supply chain our game must still be raised.

In terms of efficiency of delivery, reduction in cost, building capability and decarbonising the built environment, the UK still lags behind the global best with a sector that has still not embraced innovation in the way that perhaps manufacturing or retail has.

And as Deighton makes clear, the intention cannot just be about chasing down the cost. Instead it must, as he puts it, be about “changing behaviours in government, clients and industry to encourage greater collaboration to drive sustainable change”.

The message at this month’s HS2 industry day certainly emphasised this thinking. As chairman Sir David Higgins said: “It cannot be business as usual. This is an opportunity to do things differently.” 

It is a message that must resonate across the sector and act as a spring board for change.

Antony Oliver is the editor of Infrastructure Intelligence

If you would like to contact Antony Oliver about this, or any other story, please email antony.oliver@infrastructure-intelligence.com.