Money alone will not solve New Zealand’s infrastructure woes

Infrastructure strategy cannot wait

While the Government is not obliged to formally respond to the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission’s 30-year Strategy until September, it would be negligent not to act now with urgency, Civil Contractors Chief Executive Alan Pollard says

Breakdown of the strategy's 68 recommendations

• 3 recommendations to strengthen partnerships with and opportunities for Māori

• 4 recommendations to enable a net-zero carbon emissions Aotearoa

• 4 recommendations to support towns and regions to flourish

• 13 recommendations to build attractive and inclusive cities

• 4 recommendations to strengthen resilience to shocks and stresses

• 9 recommendations to move to a circular economy

• 9 recommendations to enable better decision making

• 10 recommendations to improve funding and financing

• 4 recommendations for an enabling planning and consenting framework

• 3 recommendations to accelerate technology use

• 5 recommendations to build workforce capacity and capability

New Zealand’s civil contractors have welcomed Rautaki Hanganga o Aotearoa – New Zealand Infrastructure Strategy 2022–2052 as ‘a new beginning’ and look forward to working to address the country’s massive infrastructure deficit with increased support, better planning, and targeted investment from government.

The strategy provides vital vision and direction for the country’s infrastructure networks, framing challenges and solutions in a way that gave ‘much-needed clarity’.

This national blueprint shows us how much work we have to do to get where we need to be, laying out the challenges and proposing solutions from an objective viewpoint, providing avenues for consensus and setting a coherent plan that can adapt to our future needs.

The Strategy lays bare the huge task in bringing the country’s infrastructure up to date, with a massive construction worker shortfall projected to reach 118,500 by 2024, construction costs rising 60 per cent faster than the rest of the economy, an infrastructure deficit of $210 billion, and a need for infrastructure spending at $31 billion a year.

As well as challenges, the Strategy also explores potential solutions and ways to work smarter, as opposed to simply spending more. Of particular significance is where spending would have the most positive effect.

Balancing the need to maintain existing infrastructure as well as build new is important, as is the need for government, support agencies and industry to partner on the implementation of the strategy.

We now have a shared direction we all need to get behind long-term. Not just infrastructure constructors, who have been aware of and working to resolve these challenges for some time, but Government, opposition parties, iwi, local government, and everyday New Zealanders.

This applies on a massive scale such as through State Highways, major projects and urban centres; but is just as relevant at the smaller scale of a community or individuals.

We need to change our thinking about infrastructure. It’s important we consider more than just major projects, but also think of the road or public transport

that takes us where we need to go, the pipe that brings water to our house, and the people that make the system work.

The strategy calls for systemic change to better construct, support and maintain the essential infrastructure the country needs over coming decades, as well as the resource to maintain and support existing transport, water, energy, and other infrastructure networks.

The Government is required to respond to the 68 recommendations provided in the strategy by September.

There are key investments required if the country is to step up to meet its infrastructure needs.

However the modest Budget 2022 allocation for infrastructure could delay action on many of the report’s recommendations – and many critical infrastructure projects – until 2023 or beyond.

The Government has a golden opportunity to re-align its infrastructure investment when it issues

its response to the recommendations.

It is our hope that the Government takes this report seriously and moves quickly to ensure New Zealand’s infrastructure needs are given the attention, and funding, they deserve.

We know contractors need more people and the confidence they will get the funding they need to invest in plant and equipment if they are to have any chance on delivering on New Zealand’s multi-faceted future infrastructure needs. Not just to overcome the deficit on deferred new capital works, but also to replace

and repair our existing well-worn water, transport and other infrastructure networks.

It’s not all about spending more either. The Strategy also sets out ways to address our challenges. There are better ways to work and big wins to be had through reform of the Resource Management Act and consenting process, investment in vocational education for infrastructure trades on-shore and talent attraction offshore, and easing pressure on supply chains.

CCNZ has urged Government and opposition to commit to infrastructure and support the investment needed to get the work done building and maintaining NZ’s transport, water, energy, and communications networks. Not just for big projects (although those are important), but also for the work that goes into repairing and maintaining our roads, water networks and other infrastructure every day.

Any loss of momentum now will create serious resourcing and delivery risks downstream, and most of all we need confidence, leadership and investment from clients to meet the challenge head-on.

The Strategy explores potential solutions and ways to work smarter, as opposed to simply spending more