It’s time for less talk, more action on infrastructure
Major infrastructure projects can power economic growth, but for years, projects have been subject to delays, cutbacks, and cancellations. The new Government should take a fresh approach.
In the months leading up to the election, Keir Starmer and his team repeatedly pledged to ‘get Britain building again’ as part of its drive for economic growth, and promising a ten-year infrastructure strategy. The new Government is right to highlight the connection between infrastructure and growth. Major projects create jobs in the construction sector and throughout the supply chain, but they also lay the foundations for prosperity in the years to come, facilitating the economic activity of the future.
This has always been clear to the mineral products sector. We are a key part of the supply chain for infrastructure projects, supplying essential construction materials such as concrete, cement, asphalt, and aggregates, alongside lesser-known industrial minerals that support domestic manufacturing. But our sector also relies on energy and transport infrastructure to produce and move those materials.
Recent years, however, have seen a frustrating failure to match rhetoric and promises on infrastructure with effective delivery – something Labour rightly lamented in their manifesto.
From the northern leg of HS2, to the Wylfa Newydd nuclear power plant, to multiple delayed road infrastructure projects, far too many key infrastructure projects have been delayed, cut back, or cancelled altogether. Many of these projects hang in the balance for years before the axe finally falls.
This not only means that we miss out on important infrastructure for the future, but also causes costly uncertainty for businesses in the mineral products sector and across the infrastructure supply chain.
Planning ahead for the supply chain
Mineral products producers need to plan ahead to meet future demand for materials. It can take up to fifteen years for a newly-identified mineral extraction site to start production, so investment decisions need to be made well in advance.
However, with infrastructure projects – which are among the sector’s largest customers – constantly being delayed, cut back, or cancelled, it has become more and more difficult for the sector to plan and invest with confidence.
Major infrastructure projects, and the businesses which rely on them, have been let down by a pattern of unrealistic promises and unreliable delivery from successive governments. It’s time for a different, more rational, approach.
In its Priorities for the Next Government document, published before the general election, the Mineral Products Association (MPA) has set out how the new Government can chart a different course, and ensure projects are delivered in a reliable, efficient, and sustainable manner.
It’s essential that Labour follows through on their manifesto commitment to publishing an infrastructure strategy that looks at least ten years into the future, and provides businesses and mineral planning authorities with a reliable view of the infrastructure project pipeline.
But this shouldn’t be a one-off document. The project pipeline should be digitised and trackable, so businesses can plan ahead. Most importantly, it needs to be realistic and consistent: the days of over-optimistic announcements, and projects being delayed, cut back, or cancelled after months of speculation, need to stop. Businesses need to be able to trust that the Government will stick to its own strategy.
Confidence to invest
Even when projects do proceed as planned, there is still room for improvement in giving the supply chain the certainty it needs.
Many projects don’t engage with the material supply chain early enough, with the supply and availability of mineral products often simply being assumed. The new Government can correct this by mandating Resource and Material Supply audits as an early part of the planning process for major infrastructure projects. This would mean that projects and their suppliers have a clear idea from an early stage of what materials the project will need, allowing for proper forward planning. It would also benefit the effectiveness of the mineral planning system, particularly where projects are likely to require a significant increase in material supply over and above the market baseline.
This isn’t just about giving suppliers peace of mind. It would allow businesses to make investment decisions earlier and more efficiently, reducing unnecessary costs and allowing for further investment where it matters: innovation and jobs. It would also give the mineral planning system a more accurate picture of future demand – currently, in the absence of better information, planners often assume that demand will simply continue in a straight line, leading to under-replenishment of mineral reserves.
Labour’s early record on infrastructure delivery is mixed. While a number of key projects, such as the Stonehenge Tunnel, have been cancelled, others, particularly in the renewable energy sector, have been given a much-needed green light. The Government’s planned changes to the National Planning Policy Framework, including the implementation of a universal system of strategic planning and an emphasis on ensuring local plans take a consistent approach to infrastructure delivery, are also welcome.
But the true test of the new Government will be in the months and years to come, starting with the Budget in October. If they want to achieve their ambitions for economic growth, they will need to break the cycle of broken promises and scrapped projects, and stick to their manifesto pledges on infrastructure delivery.
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