ICE submission to the Public Accounts Committee inquiry on the creation of the UK Infrastructure Bank

This submission outlines the ICE’s views on the creation of the UK Infrastructure Bank:

• While the private infrastructure finance market is broadly strong, there are areas where it might not be the best vehicle to deliver infrastructure projects.
• The UK Infrastructure Bank aims to fill in these areas, and the ICE broadly agrees with the bank’s objectives of targeting investment into net zero and supporting regional and local economic growth across the country.
• The bank’s £12 billion in capital from 2021 to 2026 is lower in comparison to the European Investment Bank (EIB). While funding from the EIB dried up in the aftermath of the 2016 EU referendum, it averaged approximately £5 billion of financing to UK projects every year before that.
• Confirmation from the Treasury that the bank will develop a specific advisory service for local authorities and other project promoters is welcome, as this can address capacity gaps and help ensure infrastructure projects address strategic objectives.
• The UK Infrastructure Bank Bill offers an opportunity to strengthen strategic decision-making. One way would be to add a formal mechanism in the bill for setting up and regularly updating the National Infrastructure Strategy (NIS), placing the NIS on a statutory footing.
• This would ensure the UK maintains an overall strategic infrastructure framework for infrastructure planning. In turn, this would guide the bank as to priority areas of investment and allow it to make more effective decisions.