The inaugural working week of 2016 heralded the arrival of the first consultation on the Chancellor’s latest plan to redress deficiencies in the United Kingdom’s method of assessing and analysing the national need for the delivery of infrastructure projects. Announced as part of George Osborne’s “major plan to get Britain building”
[1] in October 2015, the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) is one ingredient in a four-part recipe to reinvigorate the way important infrastructure projects are “planned, determined and funded”. The arrival of the NIC consultation document has provided a welcome insight for the first time into the specifics of how the body intends to operate, and the nature of its role in assisting the delivery of national infrastructure. It is fair to say that the consultation document is somewhat dense, and so the following is intended to distil the key details of the NIC and its workings, and most importantly, the implications of the Commission for the planning and delivery of major infrastructure.
It is proposed that the central purpose of the NIC will be to identify the national strategic infrastructure needs of the country over the next ten to thirty years. The delivery of major infrastructure has historically been inhibited by the planning systems in place, resulting in a lack of investment and deficient long-term planning. The intention is that the establishment of the NIC will help remedy this, and provide a new coordinated approach to identifying and promoting the infrastructure needed to stimulate further national economic growth.
Instead of replacing the measures within The Planning Act 2008, which established the ‘new’ development consent regime for determining nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIPs), it is intended that the Commission is to operate within the provisions of the Act. Those recommendations the Commission makes in an National Infrastructure Assessment which are agreed on by Parliament become ‘Endorsed Recommendations’, and importantly, it is proposed that these will become material considerations in the assessment of NSIP proposals. The weight given to these however will be at the discretion of the Examining Authority and Secretary of State in determining development consent order (DCO) applications. Where appropriate, Endorsed Recommendations would also be incorporated into National Policy Statements for infrastructure planning.
While the Chancellor may give the impression that the creation of the NIC represents a revolutionary turning point in planning for national infrastructure, many would argue that the process of positive reform is already well underway through provisions in the Planning Act 2008. Certainly, recent
NLP research confirms that decisions for NSIPs are being made more quickly than previously on infrastructure projects enerally.
Opinion may be divided when considering the establishment of a body like the NIC. Some may scoff at yet another public body established to ensure the efficient operation of other public bodies. For others, the NIC may be viewed as a new way to secure effective, coordinated decision-making to satisfy the infrastructure needs of the country for decades ahead. The independence from government could allow the Commission to address more controversial issues without significant bias, while ensuring that public monies for infrastructure planning are directed where they are most likely to have a positive effect.
The specifics outlined above are of course subject to the outcome of the consultation, and therefore the principles underpinning the remit of the NIC may well change. Despite this, the consultation has allowed the public for the first time to understand how the Chancellor plans “to get Britain building”, and what the taxpayer and consumer can expect to gain as both funder and end user. It will be compelling to see the reaction to a key consultation on what could potentially be an important player in infrastructure planning for decades to come.
