What you need to know about Labour’s plans for planning, transport, energy, and more.
First published on 26 July 2024
Since winning the UK general election on 5 July, the Labour party has been busy.
The State Opening of Parliament saw 40 new bills, a quarter of which concerned infrastructure – including legislation on planning, transport, energy, and devolution.
Here’s everything we know so far about the new government’s plans for infrastructure.
Taking the brakes off planning
The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will reform the local planning system.
It will speed up planning by:
- Streamlining the nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIP) regime.
- Reforming compulsory purchase rules to unlock more land for development.
- Modernising planning committees and boosting capacity in local planning authorities.
- Reviewing national policy statements every five years.
The government has also published a draft update of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
The government acknowledges the inevitable trade-offs between development and nature recovery. In a letter to environmental organisations, it promised to “find the right balance between nature conservation and development”.
The bill will likely apply to England and Wales, with some measures possibly extending to Scotland.
The ICE’s view
The UK’s planning system is woefully inefficient.
Only 1% of local planning authorities process most applications within the required 13-week timeframe.
Between 2012 and 2021, the average consenting time for NSIPs rose from 2.6 to 4.2 years.
The bill recognises the key role infrastructure plays in the UK’s growth and sustainability, and commitments to planning reform are very welcome.
Read more: Does England’s national networks planning guidance already need an update?
Public spending overhaul
In a speech to parliament on 29 July, chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a multi-year spending review.
The UK Treasury uses spending reviews to allocate trillions of pounds of public money over periods of one or more years. The last spending review took place in 2021.
The chancellor committed to conducting spending reviews every two years, rather than on an ad hoc basis. The current and subsequent reviews will cover three-year periods or longer.
The measures were part of the chancellor’s response to an audit of Treasury finances, which Reeves claimed uncovered a £22 billion overspend.
To save a total of £13.5 billion over the next two years, the chancellor also axed several infrastructure projects, including the Stonehenge Tunnel.
The ICE’s view
The ICE has long called for more strategic clarity on infrastructure spending. Whatever priorities the government decides on, the infrastructure industry needs clarity to deliver them.
The chancellor’s announcements of a multi-year spending review, and further commitment to regular multi-year reviews, are therefore welcome.
It’s crucial that the government now follows through with a national infrastructure strategy, setting out a vision in line with the National Infrastructure Commission’s latest recommendations.
Read more: How smarter infrastructure spending could mean better value for the UK government.
Special measures for failing water companies
Labour has promised a clampdown on water companies that fail to meet water quality goals.
A first step on the path to wider reform, the Water (Special Measures) Bill will:
- Introduce a new code of conduct for water companies.
- Give Ofwat powers to ban bonuses, bring criminal charges against lawbreaking bosses, and impose automatic fines on companies that fail to meet environmental standards.
- Require companies to monitor sewage outlets in real time and share data with Ofwat for independent scrutiny.
The bill was introduced to the House of Lords on 5 September 2024. Most of the its measures will apply to England and Wales.
The government has said that future legislation will “fundamentally transform” the water industry and improve the UK’s waterways.
Ofwat has since proposed £168 million in fines for Northumbrian Water, Thames Water, and Yorkshire Water following the regulator’s investigation into illegal sewage spills.
The ICE’s view
The UK’s water and wastewater infrastructure will face enormous challenges in the coming decades.
Here are the facts:
- The UK uses 14 billion litres of water per day and will need 4 billion more by 2050.
- The UK’s thousands of kilometres of Victorian-era sewers struggle to keep up with modern demand.
- Public trust in water companies is at its lowest level in 13 years.
- Sewage spills into rivers and seas have caused widespread anger. In 2022, there were an average of 825 overflows per day – over 300,000 in total.
- Only one in five UK waterways are in, or nearing, good ecological condition.
The ICE has called for stronger regulation, longer-term planning, and better testing and assessment of nature-based solutions.
Later this year, a new ICE policy programme will look in-depth at water sector reform.
Great British Energy
The Great British Energy Bill will establish a new, publicly owned company to develop and manage clean energy projects across the UK.
The company will work in partnership with the private sector to produce, store, and distribute clean energy. £8.3 billion investment over the coming Parliament will give the UK public a stake in the country’s energy security.
The government introduced the bill on 25 July. The bill will apply UK-wide, with Great British Energy headquartered in Scotland.
The UK government will work with the Northern Ireland Executive – who have devolved control over energy policy – to implement the legislation.
The government aims to double onshore wind, triple solar power, and quadruple offshore wind by 2030. It’s already taken steps to speed up the clean energy transition, including:
- Banning new licenses for North Sea oil and gas drilling.
- Greenlighting three major solar power projects in the East of England.
- Ending an effective ban on onshore windfarms.
New powers for the Crown Estate
Great British Energy’s first major partnership will be with the Crown Estate, which manages £16 billion of land and seabed around England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
The Crown Estate manages one of the world’s largest floating wind leasing programmes in the Celtic Sea.
The partnership will deliver an estimated 20–30 GW of new offshore wind at lease stage by 2030 – enough to power almost 20 million homes.
A Crown Estate Bill will extend the estate’s investment and borrowing capabilities and allow it to adopt digital technologies to streamline its work.
Home heating and energy efficiency
Labour’s pre-election manifesto also pledged to improve energy efficiency in UK homes.
A Warm Homes Plan will invest £6.6 billion in grants and low-interest loans over the next five years to insulate homes, install solar panels and low-carbon heating, and more.
Private landlords will also need to ensure that rented homes meet minimum energy efficiency standards by 2030.
The ICE’s view
The UK has made great progress with clean energy.
In 2022, it became the first major economy to halve greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels, driven largely by decarbonising energy.
Renewables now account for over 40% of the UK’s electricity. But the task ahead is still enormous – and renewable energy projects, particularly offshore wind, have slowed in recent years.
The National Engineering Policy Centre (NEPC) is urging the government to make electricity decarbonisation a ‘national mission’.
The private sector alone is highly unlikely to deliver the investment needed. A public energy company, in combination with market reform, could empower a quicker, cheaper transition.
The UK also needs new transmission infrastructure to get clean energy to the communities that need it. This requires public buy-in.
Indeed, public choice will play a fundamental role in meeting the UK’s net zero ambitions.
Investment alone isn’t enough. The new government will need to compelling vision to the UK public. With household finances strained, people need to trust that net zero is happening for them, not to them.
The future of UK transport
Connectivity in the North of England
The government has carried forward the High Speed Rail (Crewe – Manchester) Bill from the previous Parliament.
It isn’t reversing the previous government’s decision to cancel the flagship project’s northern leg. Rather, it plans to ‘repurpose’ the bill to improve east-to-west connectivity in the North of England.
This includes powers for rail infrastructure in the Manchester area, including new stations at Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport.
Public rail to become the default
The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill will make public sector operators the default option for UK rail networks.
When existing contracts end – or if private operators fail to meet service commitments – they will return to public ownership.
Great British Railways
A Railways Bill will merge passenger services and network management into a single public body.
The previous government announced plans to form Great British Railways in 2023, though legislation got no further than the draft stage. Labour has resurrected the plans as part of their wider reform programme.
Great British Rail will:
- Have a legal duty to support and grow the use of rail freight.
- Reform the ticketing system to improve services and grow passenger numbers across the whole network.
- Operate under the scrutiny of a new watchdog, the Passenger Services Authority.
While legislation to formally establish the body progresses through Parliament, a ‘shadow’ Great British Rail will begin building connections with key industry bodies and delivering improvements immediately.
The bill will apply across the whole UK, though devolved bodies, such as Merseytravel and Transport for London, will retain their existing powers. Light rail and tram services will also be exempt.
New powers for local bus services
On 9 September, the government announced it would allow all local transport authorities in England to run their own bus services.
These powers were previously limited to mayoral combined authorities.
The Buses Bill will also reverse a ban on setting up new publicly owned bus companies, make bus funding more flexible, and improve bus services for communities that don't pursue public control.
A long-term strategy for transport
Labour’s manifesto included a commitment to a ‘long-term strategy for transport’.
In a speech to parliament on 30 July, transport secretary Louise Haigh committed to a capital spending review to support a transport strategy.
The government doesn’t need legislation to develop a strategy. As a result, the recent King’s speech focused on rail reform.
It’s not yet clear what’s in store for other transport modes, including roads and active travel.
The ICE’s view
Rail is an integral part of the UK’s transport network.
Rapid, reliable connections between rural and urban areas is crucial for economic growth, bringing customers closer to markets and job opportunities.
Better services will also reduce the number of car journeys, reducing traffic congestion and emissions.
So, rail reform is a strong start. But the UK needs an integrated strategy that considers how multiple transport modes can best meet people’s needs.
England is the only UK nation without a dedicated transport strategy – something the ICE has challenged.
Alongside a UK-wide strategic network (UKNet), as recommended by the 2021 Union Connectivity Review, this could help the country’s networks adapt to modern needs.
Other bills and pledges of note
The Digital Information and Smart Data Bill
Among many customer-focused measures, this bill will introduce a National Underground Assets Register (NUAR).
A digital map of the country’s subterranean cables and pipes, this resource will provide standardised, secure data to engineers and other professionals who install and maintain these assets.
The bill formalises work already underway on the NUAR, which should be fully operational in Northern Ireland, England, and Wales by the end of 2025.
The National Wealth Fund Bill
Another UK-wide bill, this legislation will create a new institution, the National Wealth Fund, to invest £7.3 billion in key economic infrastructure and clean energy projects.
This investment will aim to attract an additional £21.9 billion in private funding.
The fund will start investing immediately via the UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB).
Work is underway to ‘align’ the UKIB and the British Business Bank under the new fund’s remit – though what this looks like in practice isn’t yet clear.
The Budget Responsibility Bill
This bill will ensure additional checks and measures stop the current and future UK governments from making significant tax or spending changes without first commissioning impact analysis.
The government introduced the bill on 18 July. Read the full text and explanatory notes at bills.parliament.uk.
This will apply across the whole UK.
The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority
In its election manifesto, Labour revealed its intention to merge the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) and Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) into a ‘new, powerful’ body.
The new body – the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) – would ‘better support the delivery of major capital projects’.
The IPA supports the delivery of major infrastructure in the UK. The NIC, meanwhile, provides advice on the government’s infrastructure priorities and progress.
The Treasury oversees both, though NIC has more independence.
Merging the two will consolidate responsibility for strategic planning and delivery into a single body at the heart of British government.
