Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop announced that a National Infrastructure Agency (NIA) would commence work in December as part of a suite of reforms, largely modelled after Australia.
The new agency will be formed by expanding Crown Infrastructure Partners, which currently manages the delivery of several billion dollars' worth of government projects.
Bishop said the exact size of the NIA has not been finalised but it was expected to have around 60 staff and an operating budget of $26 million, that's a 50% headcount increase and 44% funding boost.
In return, the agency will solicit private sector investment proposals, collaborate with Crown agencies on privately financed projects, manage central government infrastructure funds, and continue existing CIP work.
Examples of central infrastructure funds include the National Land Transport Fund, the Infrastructure Funding and Financing Fund, and the Housing Infrastructure Fund.
Bishop said establishing the NIA is part of broader efforts to simplify and reorganise the central infrastructure system, which he described as "confusing" and plagued by "duplication and inefficiency."
Other responsibilities have also been shuffled around. The Infrastructure Commission will continue acting as the Government’s independent advisor on long-term strategy.
The Treasury will assume the commission’s responsibility for developing public-private partnership policies, reporting to and supporting the Infrastructure Minister.
Rau Paenga, also called Crown Infrastructure Delivery, will help government agencies with low capabilities deliver their infrastructure projects.
Thirty year plan
Bishop has tasked the Infrastructure Commission with leading the development of a 30-year pipeline of projects that will outline New Zealand’s long-term needs and plan investments for the next 10 to 15 years.
It will include an assessment of what infrastructure NZ needs and can afford, an overview of upcoming projects over the next decade, an independent review of possible projects, and policy reforms that could improve development and maintenance of infrastructure.
Bishop said it was important the plan had bipartisan support, or else it wouldn’t have the long-term stability the construction industry has repeatedly asked for.
To keep the opposition involved, the Minister has written to the infrastructure spokespeople of each party and invited them to a formal briefing by the Infrastructure Commission. He plans for these briefings to be held twice a year, on an ongoing basis.
There will also be an annual debate on the plan in Parliament, to thrash out areas of agreement and disagreement between parties. However, the infrastructure plan itself will be set independently by the Commission.
“Building consensus on infrastructure won’t be easy, but I am taking concrete steps to bring other parties on the journey, because, quite frankly, it is the right thing to do,” Bishop said.
Hard sell?
This bipartisan approach may be a hard sell, given that the Coalition Government scrapped a long list of policies and investments initiated by the previous Labour Government.
Even while still in opposition, Bishop and his party backed out of a bipartisan housing policy agreement after some caucus members became worried about losing their electorate seats.
In an op-ed published prior to Bishop’s announcement, Green Party infrastructure spokesperson Julie-Anne Genter said he talked “a big game” but didn’t back it up.
He talked about the infrastructure pipeline certainty but the Government had scrapped Kāinga Ora’s public housing build, water infrastructure plans, and the new Cook Strait ferries, she said.
These decisions have meant the Crown has stopped building houses, worsening an already serious downturn in the sector, and local councils have been sent back to the drawing board on water and zoning plans, further delaying related investments.
Plus, the coalition withdrew from a transport partnership with Wellington City Council, forcing a scramble to save some projects. And, it cast doubt over Auckland City’s pipeline by removing a fuel tax needed to fund future projects.
Shortly after becoming Transport Minister, Simeon Brown instructed Waka Kotahi to halt all work on cycling and walking initiatives that it was not contractually bound to complete.
It is difficult to pivot from that and immediately expect bipartisan buy-in for a new infrastructure pipeline that may not align with the opposition’s political priorities.
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