The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) is calling on the Government to tackle the problems of the UK’s worn-out infrastructure to fire up growth.
Among the recommendations in a new report, published today, the BCC is calling for ministers to:
- Improve road and rail capacity and electrify key sections of the rail network
- Deliver regional transport projects and grid connectivity
- Listen to business on its national and regional infrastructure needs, and provide long-term policy stability and improved planning capacity
The report has been produced by the BCC’s Local Economy of the Future Challenge Group, drawing on expertise from Chambers and businesses of all sizes and sectors.
It advises that the Infrastructure and Planning Bill, which is expected to be put before Parliament soon, must have the interests of business at its heart. And it calls for Government to introduce long-term policy stability to help restore business confidence that was hit by the cancellation of the latter stages of HS2.
The report also sets out a pathway to improve capacity in the planning system, through a joint initiative with business to get 100 more trained planners into local authorities. The BCC has set up the programme to address the bottlenecks in decision-making due to a lack of resources.
BCC research has found that more than three-fifths of business leaders (62%) say they just don't have the right skills in their workforce, rising to nearly three-quarters (74%) in the manufacturing and construction sectors.
Two-thirds (66%) of business leaders say their views aren't taken into account when it comes to local infrastructure decisions - on everything from digital to road improvements. This rises sharply to more than eight in ten (81%) when it comes to national infrastructure decisions.
Transport is a major challenge that needs fixing. For low-paid workers, buses are key. But more than six in ten (62%) company leaders say their local bus and tram networks are poor.
Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “The story of large-scale infrastructure development in the UK has travelled a rocky road over the past few decades.
“The perception remains that projects either end up getting cancelled, massively overrun or cost ten times the original asking price.
“The shadow of HS2 hangs heavy over the debate as businesses no longer feel they can take government announcements at face value.
“Firms find it hard to plan for their own future investment if they fear the rug will be pulled from under them halfway through delivery.
“The problems lie in the lack of a national cohesive strategy, a moribund planning system, coupled with an over-zealous legal approach and a dearth of skilled labour.
“If the Government’s plans to power economic growth through a new era of construction are to be realised, then these are the issues that must be fixed.
“It has already taken some positive steps in this direction. The recommendations in this report set out what needs to happen next. We must rebalance our approach to infrastructure and give businesses the confidence they need to align their investment plans.
“These are the reforms that our planners, engineers and the business community have been waiting on for decades. In an increasingly competitive global economy, they cannot afford to wait any longer.”
Commenting on the report, Chris Fletcher, Policy Director at Greater Manchester Chamber, said: “A successful, modern economy needs great infrastructure to move people, freight, data and energy around efficiently and sustainably.
“Setting current delivery against these ambitions creates a tale of drastic underachievement stretching back decades and in large parts of the UK even the most simple of ‘asks’ can take years to deliver if it survives political interference.
“Government seems aware of this but it needs to act now. There are a multitude of schemes just demanding to be built here in the North West that fit the bill perfectly and would boost economic growth and people’s chances for good employment opportunities and it is madness that we seem to spend more time discussing every aspect of infrastructure plans than we do actually building them. This has to change.”