Annual Monitoring Report 2021

Status:Final report complete.  

An assessment of the government’s progress in delivering infrastructure projects and programmes recommended by the Commission.

Foreword

A significant milestone was achieved at the end of 2020 with the publication of the UK’s first ever National Infrastructure Strategy. This was produced in response to the Commission’s 2018 National Infrastructure Assessment which set out a costed long term plan for the UK’s economic infrastructure from 2020 to 2050.

The fact that government published the National Infrastructure Strategy in the face of enormous upheaval created by the Covid-19 pandemic is much to its credit.

We anticipate that publication of the National Infrastructure Strategy will catalyse decision making and investment across all sectors, helping to address the challenges of levelling up the UK’s economic geography and achieving net zero. Infrastructure can also help create the conditions for a market led recovery from the major economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

But achieving this will require detailed planning, delivery roadmaps backed up by stable funding plans and, where relevant, clarity of regulatory oversight. These are critical factors for the successful delivery of the policy aspirations and targets government has now provided.

This report sets out the priorities that need to be addressed over the next year to start turning ambitions into reality. A clear roadmap for delivering charging infrastructure is needed to enable a ban on the sale on new petrol or diesel cars within the next decade, for instance; and a workable plan for ensuring the hardest to reach homes and businesses get the benefits of high capacity broadband.

We also remain of the view that major, long term investment is needed in urban public transport outside London if we are to tackle congestion in some of our largest cities and stimulate economic growth.

In offering these proposed next steps we acknowledge the uncertain backdrop caused by one of the worst economic shocks in a century. The Commission is exploring different scenarios for the potential long term behaviour patterns that may follow the Covid-19 pandemic and influence demand for and use of infrastructure. This work will help inform our work on our second National Infrastructure Assessment, due to be published in 2023.

In the shorter term, when it comes to infrastructure, government’s priority for the coming year must be to set out the policy levers and delivery plans with clear milestones that are needed to ensure tangible progress. 2020’s policy statements set the bar high: 2021 must be a year of turning policy goals into delivery.

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Sir John Armitt, Chair

Final Report

2021 Annual Monitoring Report

This is the Commission’s fourth Annual Monitoring Report, monitoring progress made by the government in delivering against recommendations made by the Commission.

Download the report

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Latest Updates

Coming up in 2024
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Coming up in 2024

This page shows a calendar reflecting the latest expected dates for Commission reports, publications and events. You can also sign up to receive our quarterly newsletter by entering your email address in the box at the foot of each website page.

1 Feb 2024 By
Welcome boost for electric vehicle charging infrastructure
Close up of a charger plugged into an electric vehicle

Welcome boost for electric vehicle charging infrastructure

The energy regulator Ofgem has today announced £300m of investment to ensure the UK has the energy infrastructure necessary to support the move to low carbon transport and heating while maintaining secure supplies. This includes new infrastructure to support 1,800 new ultra-rapid charging points at motorway service areas. In response, a National Infrastructure Commission spokesperson...

24 May 2021 By
Policy roadmap needed to achieve “important signal of intent”: Armitt on revised emissions target
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Policy roadmap needed to achieve “important signal of intent”: Armitt on revised emissions target

The National Infrastructure Commission has welcomed today’s announcement by government that it will introduce a legally binding target to reduce emissions by 78% by 2035 compared to 1990 levels, in line with recommendations from the Climate Change Committee. Sir John Armitt, Chair of the National Infrastructure Commission, said: “This ambitious target provides an important signal...

20 Apr 2021 By
Young infrastructure professionals test top ten proposals for driving change
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Young infrastructure professionals test top ten proposals for driving change

Our Young Professionals Panel considers the government’s National Infrastructure Strategy and Budget and puts forward its top ten recommendations in response to the Strategy and the Commission’s recent Annual Monitoring Report.

15 Mar 2021 By
James Heath speech to CBI Infrastructure Board
James Heath

James Heath speech to CBI Infrastructure Board

The Commission’s chief executive spoke to members of the Confederation of British Industry’s Infrastructure Board today, offering reflections on the government’s National Infrastructure Strategy, the Commission’s priorities for 2021 as set out in our Annual Monitoring Report, and to look ahead to some of the long term infrastructure challenges that the Commission is likely to...

4 Mar 2021 By
Plans of action needed next to deliver strategic goals, says Commission
Montage of images representing infrastructure, including a woman charging an electric vehicle and a man wearing a mask using public transport

Plans of action needed next to deliver strategic goals, says Commission

Detailed plans for decarbonising energy supply, accelerating the roll out of electric vehicle charge points and connecting hard to reach areas with high capacity broadband are among the next steps needed to ensure government can deliver its aims for levelling up and meeting the net zero target, according to the National Infrastructure Commission. The Commission’s...

17 Feb 2021 By

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