Today’s state opening of Parliament saw the announcement of wide-ranging reforms to planning, energy, transport and devolution.
The new UK government set out its agenda for the 2024-25 parliamentary session in today’s King’s Speech.
The speech contained several bills carried over from the previous parliament, alongside a large portion of policy commitments made in Labour’s manifesto.
A total of 40 bills or draft bills were mentioned and 25% of all the bills had an infrastructure component. These include bills on planning, transport, energy, and devolution.
King Charles told the House of Lords that “my ministers will get Britain building… as they seek to accelerate the delivery of high-quality infrastructure and housing.”
Here's a look at the infrastructure-related bills and what they mean for the UK.
Planning and Infrastructure Bill
The Planning and Infrastructure Bill will speed up infrastructure delivery and make the planning system “an enabler of growth”.
Planning reform is central to the new government’s ambitions, particularly its plans to scale up house building and cut carbon out of the electricity system.
The bill will enable new or updated National Policy Statements to come forward, establishing a review process to update them every five years. The ICE has previously called for more regular updates.
Interestingly, the bill contains a section on “using development to fund nature recovery”, including working with “nature delivery organisations, stakeholders and the sector… to determine the best way forward”.
Not all the government’s planning reforms will require a bill. For example, the energy secretary recently overturned the de facto ban on onshore wind simply by removing two clauses from planning guidance.
Four transport-related bills
Transport featured heavily in the King’s Speech.
The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill will make public sector train operators the default rather than a last resort.
A separate Railways Bill will merge passenger services and network management into a single body: Great British Railways.
This will build on the previous government’s work and ensure Britain’s rail network delivers against the transport secretary’s six key objectives: reliability, affordability, efficiency, quality, accessibility, and safety.
There is a Better Buses Bill, which gives local leaders new powers to franchise bus services and lifts the restriction on creating new publicly-owned bus operators.
The government will also repurpose the High Speed Rail (Crewe to Manchester) Bill. This will provide powers to build and operate rail projects that improve east-to-west connectivity across the north of England.
It also includes powers to enable new rail infrastructure in Manchester and the surrounding area, including new stations at Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport.
The notes on the bill confirm that the government isn’t planning to reverse the decision to cancel phase 2 of HS2.
Great British Energy Bill
This legislation will establish the framework for Great British Energy (GBE), a new publicly owned energy production company that will own, manage, and operate clean power projects across Britain.
GBE will use £8.3bn of state funds across this five-year parliament to co-invest with the private sector in low-carbon energy generation, distribution, storage, and supply.
The legislation will also establish the scope of the new ‘Mission Control’ unit responsible for co-ordinating the government’s target to achieve clean power by 2030.
Last month, the ICE held a roundtable to discuss what an engineering-led plan to decarbonise the grid by 2030 would look like.
English Devolution Bill
UK governments have extended devolution to English regions in recent years, and the English Devolution Bill is, in many respects, a continuation of that work.
This new legislation promises to address the "inconsistent, deal-based and patchwork approach” to devolution.
This includes allowing local leaders to formally request more powers over strategic planning, local transport networks, skills, and employment support.
Labour’s manifesto included a commitment to introduce multi-year funding settlements for councils, marking an end to competitive bidding for funding, though this doesn’t appear to be in the bill.
National Wealth Fund Bill
This legislation is set to increase private investment, create jobs, and boost economic growth through a National Wealth Fund.
Funded with £7.3bn, it aims to attract £3 of private investment for every £1 of public investment.
It would grant:
- £1.8bn for ports and supply chains
- £1.5bn for gigafactories (where electric vehicle batteries are made)
- £2.5bn for the steel industry
- £1bn for carpon capture
- £500m for green hydrogen manufacturing
The money will initially be allocated via the UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB).
Work is underway to ensure “closer alignment” between the UKIB and the British Business Bank.
Water (Special Measures) Bill
The new bill will strengthen the powers of Ofwat, allowing the water sector regulator to place companies in special measures if they fail to meet water quality goals.
The bill will also require water companies to install real-time monitors at every sewage outlet, with the data independently inspected by the water regulators.
The government acknowledges that this is the first step on the path to wider reform.
It says it will outline further legislation in the future to fundamentally transform the water industry and restore rivers, lakes, and seas to good health.
The ICE will launch a policy programme on water regulation reform later in the year.
A ‘fiscal lock’ through a Budget Responsibility Bill
The Budget Responsibility Bill will force every government budget and other fiscal event to be subject to an independent assessment from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
This will prevent governments announcing significant uncosted policies without enough scrutiny.
Labour’s manifesto confirmed an intention to “strengthen the role of the OBR”.
Depending on how quickly the bill passes through parliament, the OBR’s new powers may be in place before the new government’s first budget this autumn.
It’s unclear if the bill will contain further measures. In March 2024, Rachel Reeves confirmed that a Labour government would also ask the OBR to report on the long-term impact of capital spending decisions.
In theory, such a move would mean the chancellor would have an independent assessment of whether major infrastructure investment could help boost growth.
The ICE’s view
The new government is moving quickly to enact its manifesto pledges and deliver change.
With a working majority of 180 MPs, the agenda set out today has few parliamentary hurdles to overcome, though planning reform is likely to meet opposition.
Indeed, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill may be the most significant piece of legislation announced today.
The public’s demand for better infrastructure and more housing is high.
The National Infrastructure Commission has stated that failure to speed up delivery in the next five years could hold back economic growth and threaten carbon emission reduction targets.
While some of today’s announcements need more detail, it’s encouraging to see the scope and ambition of plans for energy, transport, devolution, and planning reform.
The ICE has been calling for clear plans in these areas for some time.
Now it's time to pick up the pace and deliver an infrastructure system that can meet the UK's economic, social, and environmental goals.
What does the UK’s new Labour government mean for infrastructure?
The ICE has set out its priorities for the new government. Find out more.
