Britain’s ‘crumbling’ infrastructure to be ‘transformed’ by £725bn 10-year investment plan

Chancellor of the exchequer, Rachel Reeves has vowed a ‘renewal of Britain’, announcing a new 10-year infrastructure strategy to rebuild the country’s foundations is due to be published this week.

Billions have been promised over the next decade, with ministers prioritising plans for transport network upgrades, building new homes, investing in green energy, and modernising public services, including hospitals and schools.

The chancellor said: “The British people voted for change – and this is how we deliver it. For too long, our infrastructure – our schools and hospitals, or our roads and bridges – have been left to crumble, holding back communities and stunting economic growth.

“This was a dereliction of duty by previous governments overseeing an era of managed decline, but it ends with this one.”

The strategy comes amid a weakening economy which saw GDP shrink in April by 0.3 per cent – an unexpected decline from economists’ prediction of a 0.1 per cent drop.

Recruitment also cooled as vacancies decreased by 63,000 to 736,000 in the three months to May, compared to the previous quarter.

Companies were said to be coping with the rising costs imposed by the chancellor in last October’s budget, who has since refused to rule out further tax rises in the autumn budget.

The government’s infrastructure strategy announcement comes following last week’s spending review, which saw it commit to £15.6 billion for transport upgrades, £39 billion for social and affordable housing and £30 billion to nuclear power, including £14.2 billion for Britain’s first state-funded nuclear power station in a generation at Sizewell C.

Reeves added: “We are investing in Britain’s future, brick by brick, road by road and track by track. The Strategy will rebuild people’s pride in their homes, while growing the economy, and putting more money in people’s pockets as we deliver our Plan for Change.”

Becky Wood, chief executive officer of the newly established National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) which has been formed to ‘fix the foundations of our infrastructure system’, said: “Infrastructure is the backbone supporting our nation – from the roads that connect us to the houses we live in, and from the schools and hospitals that serve our communities, to the energy networks that power our lives.

“This strategy is a decisive step forward for our nation’s infrastructure, providing the stability that businesses, investors and communities need, as well as tackling head on the fundamental issues that the sector has experienced over recent years.

“NISTA, alongside partners in industry, will be at the very heart of helping to deliver what is set out in the strategy, embracing the abundance of opportunities it outlines, driving forward the ambition and enabling transformational change.”

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