UK publishes £600bn pipeline

The UK Infrastructure & Projects Authority has published the government’s £600bn pipeline of construction projects spanning the next decade.

Covering investment plans for roads, hospitals and schools, the proposals include a variety of schemes that will see investment from both the public and private sectors.

It includes projects such as East West Rail, the route covering Cambridge, Milton Keynes and Oxford that is being used as a pilot for a PPP model on the railway, with the private partner expected to be responsible for the track and trains that will eventually run on it.

Both the A303 and Lower Thames Crossing projects are included in the pipeline - however no mention is made on how they might be funded following the abolition of PF2.

In the ministerial foreword, Exchequer Secretary Robert Jenrick said: "Whilst we are no longer considering PF2 as a tool for achieving delivery of our plans, we remain committed to ensuring that levels of private investment remain high, including through established tools such as Contracts for Difference, the Regulated Asset Base Model, and the UK Guarantees Scheme.

"We are committed to renewing our infrastructure to drive economic growth in all parts of the United Kingdom,” he added. “Over the course of this Parliament, investment in economic infrastructure will reach the highest sustained levels in over 40 years.”

The analysis document supporting the pipeline showed a tiny proportion of 'mixed' public and private funding for social infrastructure, with the most mixed funding coming in the transport sector.

As part of its efforts to support this investment, the government is also launching a call for evidence on offsite building, as ministers seek more projects to be delivered using innovative techniques such as digital manufacturing.