Presidential Roundtable summary: the future of infrastructure finance

Public finance alone cannot meet the challenges facing governments around the world.

Growing and decarbonising economies, adapting to climate change, meeting people’s everyday needs – all require huge investment in sustainable, resilient infrastructure systems.

Most of this new investment will need to come from private sources. But the global market is becoming increasingly competitive.

This roundtable, chaired by ICE President Prof Anusha Shah, explored why investors see UK infrastructure as a risky bet – and what government and industry can do to change that.

The discussion covered:

• The ‘overwhelming demand’ for new infrastructure in the UK, driven by its legally binding net zero target.
• The constraints on public funding and why the government needs to be ruthless about prioritisation.
• Why the private sector sees UK infrastructure as a high-risk investment, and how to tackle this.
• Alternative sources of private investment and lessons from around the world.
• Changing the narrative to one that is more confident, collaborative, and open to failure.