Sir John Armitt welcomes Neale Coleman to National Infrastructure Commission

Experience and expertise on the National Infrastructure Commission has been bolstered with the appointment of Neale Coleman CBE as an expert commissioner, with current commissioners Tim Besley, Sadie Morgan and Bridget Rosewell also reappointed for a further five-year term.

Coleman has been appointed as NIC Commissioner until April 2022. He is currently director and founding partner at Blackstock Partnerships Limited. Prior to this he worked at the Greater London Authority from 2000 – 2015, leading the mayor’s work on London’s Olympic bid, the delivery of the games and their regeneration legacy and was a board member of the Olympic Delivery Authority throughout its life. 

Coleman co-chaired the Olympic Delivery Group, which had responsibility for leading preparations for the games prior to the creation of the ODA, ensuring the right infrastructure was in place to support the largest sporting event in the world. He was appointed CBE in the New Year Honours 2013, for services to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Professor Sir Tim Besley, professor Sadie Morgan and Bridget Rosewell have also been reappointed as NIC Commissioners for a further five-year term. 

Rishi Sunak, chancellor of the exchequer, said: “Infrastructure investment in the right projects, being built better and faster than before, is key to our economic recovery. The National Infrastructure Commission is an essential part in this effort, and these appointments will ensure that it has the right expertise to succeed.”

Tim Besley CBE is school professor of economics and political science and W. Arthur Lewis professor of development economics at the LSE. He was a co-chair of the LSE growth commission, a member of the IFS’s Mirrlees Review panel, and chair of the Council of Management of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research.

Sadie Morgan OBE, BA (HONS), MA (RCA), FRSA is a co-founding director at the award-winning practice, dRMM Architects. She became the youngest and only the third ever female president of the Architectural Association in 2013. In March 2015, Sadie was appointed as design chair for HS2 reporting directly to the secretary of state.

Bridget Rosewell OBE, CBE, MA, MPhil, FICE was appointed chair of the independent review into Planning Appeal Inquiries in June 2018. Bridget is an experienced director, policy maker and economist. She has worked extensively on cities, infrastructure and finance, advising on projects in road and rail and on major property developments and regeneration.

National Infrastructure Commission chair Sir John Armitt welcomed the chancellors announcement, and said: “I am very pleased to welcome Neale to the Commission. From our time working together on the Olympics I know he brings a depth of experience in infrastructure planning and how it can help improve the economic prospects of communities. 

“Alongside the confirmation that we will continue to benefit from the expertise of Tim, Sadie and Bridget, I also look forward to welcoming further new Commissioners in due course to further broaden the insights and expertise we offer to government.”

In addition to these appointments, the chancellor intends to launch a competition to appoint additional new commissioners to the NIC to further strengthen its expertise and diversity. Further details on this will follow in the coming months.