Politics Home | Creating the right conditions to unlock UK infrastructure investment and growth

The UK stands at an important moment in its pursuit of economic renewal. Plans and policies agreed in the next few months will determine the pace and progress of infrastructure development over the next decade.

Against that backdrop, the King’s Speech yet again reinforced the role of infrastructure in supporting economic growth across the UK. In the days following UKREiiF, as the public sector, industry, and investors reflect on discussions, the task now is to turn intent into confidence.

That confidence is essential if private investment is to be attracted at the scale and pace required.

Recent research among over 100 institutional investors shows clear appetite: 90 per cent rank the UK as an attractive destination for infrastructure investment in the next three years, and 71 per cent see UK projects as low-to-medium risk. These are encouraging signals, reflecting the shift in the government’s approach to planning and regulation, reinforced by new mechanisms such as the National Wealth Fund and pension fund reforms.

Beneath this optimism, however, the window of opportunity is narrowing. Only 19 per cent of investors firmly prioritise the UK over other regions, and nearly two-thirds have walked away from UK projects in the past where business cases failed to stack up. If we do not address the barriers – uncertain returns, planning delays, and delivery risk – we will lose momentum and capital to more competitive markets.

De-risking: building confidence through early integration

Investors are not averse to risk, but they demand clarity, predictability, and robust governance.

Early integration of public bodies, investors, and delivery organisations ensures that projects are both well-conceived and deliverable from the outset. This integrated approach must extend across the asset lifecycle, embedding risk management at every stage.

Collaborative contracting models have proven to reduce cost and schedule overruns through this approach, with the Construction Leadership Council estimating it can achieve savings of up to 20 per cent.

The East West Rail Alliance demonstrates this in practice: Phase 2 planning was completed 30 per cent faster than Phase 1 despite being twice the size. This is the kind of outcome that builds investor confidence – and it is replicable.

Incentivising: funding models that work

The government’s commitment to mobilise £3 of private capital for every £1 of public funding and the £50bn Mansion House Accord are a step in the right direction, but these must be underpinned by credible delivery plans and viable business cases.

To mobilise private finance, we need funding models that provide investors with the clarity and returns they require. Public-private partnerships remain central, with 37 per cent of investors citing their importance. However, 30 per cent are willing to pilot new funding models and participate in blended finance initiatives – provided the rewards outweigh the risks.

Thames Tideway illustrates what that looks like in practice. Its financing structure ensured returns during construction and provided the government as the insurer of last resort, giving investors the predictability they need.

Success depends on clear risk-sharing – reflected in models such as the Regulated Asset Base – well-defined governance, and policy stability that transcends electoral cycles.

Delivering: place-based partnerships

Regional and place-based investment programmes are pivotal to delivering impact at pace. Nearly 80 per cent of investors are interested in regional growth programmes, and a third are actively exploring options. This appetite now has a more enabling policy framework behind it, laying the foundation for regional delivery with place-based business cases.

Long-term, bundled regional programmes can open new funding pathways and turn complex, fragmented projects into stable propositions for institutional investors. These are the delivery mechanisms for the government’s growth mission: regional rail links, industrial clusters, science and manufacturing corridors.

However, such programmes could reveal capability gaps in public bodies and stretch them further, previously highlighted as a key lesson in the National Audit Office report, Lessons learned: private finance for infrastructure. In our research, investors acknowledged their experience of local bureaucracy as a barrier to invest, from perceptions of slow planning and difficulty securing approvals to the pace of local government.

Deploying digital tools such as AI and spatial data can accelerate delivery and reduce uncertainty. Additionally, integrators can fill local government capability gaps.

AtkinsRéalis is already working with a number of Mayoral Combined Authorities to plan and structure their regional growth programmes, including supporting national Green Book pilots that are demonstrating how place-based appraisal can unlock infrastructure value at scale. Scaling these pilots has the potential to get more cranes in the sky.

A window of opportunity

Policy conditions are better aligned than they have been for years. Place-based business cases, new funding models, and National Wealth Fund pilots together provide a credible platform for the ten-year infrastructure pipeline to attract the private investment it needs. The next step will be to move from strategy to delivery.

Programmes that succeed share common characteristics: early integration of the right stakeholders, clear risk allocation, and a commitment to collaborative delivery. Financial clarity, policy stability, and coordinated public-private effort are the conditions for unlocking investment and driving growth across every region.