the Edge, in collaboration with the NIC and ICE held a Round Table discussion on the 16th November 2024 to address the question of the costs and risks associated with delaying the implementation and maintenance of critical infrastructure in the UK . The session laid out, examined and tested examples of the available evidence in order to make proposals for positive change in the sector.
The discussion built on the NIC’s Second National Infrastructure Assessment report available on the their website.
It was not planned to cover every possible delay or variety of infrastructure in the short time available and we are most interested in specific examples and case studies where delay has resulted in a quantifiable cost (not necessarily financial). The session focused on three indicative areas; grid transformation, clean water and transport; looking at examples of the environmental, social and economics costs of delay in each sector.
For each topic area the three speakers were asked to spend a maximum of five minutes (with or without a presentation) discussing an example or area of evidence relating to the impact of delay. There will then be a short discussion between them on the bigger, possibly interconnected, picture before passing on to the next topic
The session ran as follows:
Welcome – The Institution of Civil Engineers
Chair: Karl Fitzgerald, Project Director, Infrastructure and Projects Authority
Introduction: Sir John Armitt, Chair NIC
Speakers:
Grid Transformation
· Environmental cost – Charles Wood, Deputy Director, Energy UK
· Social cost - Daisy Powell-Chandler, Head of Energy and Environment, Public First
· Economic cost - Paul Wakeley, Head of Strategic Network Development, National Grid ESO
Clean water
· Environmental cost - Erica Popplewell – Campaigns Manager, River Action
· Social cost - Ana Mijic, Reader in Water Systems Integration, Imperial College
· Economic cost - Daniel Johns, Managing Director, Water Resources East
Transport
· Environmental cost – Sue Percy, Chief Executive, Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT)
· Social cost - Professor Tim Benton, Director Environment and Society, Chatham House
· Economic cost - Martin Tugwell, Chief Executive, Transport for the North
Table discussion
Summary: Sir John Armitt
This, by invitation only, event is a collaboration between the Edge, the National Infrastructure Commission and the Institution of Civil Engineers.
Venue: The ICE, 1 Great George Street London SWIP 3AA (The Rennie Room)
Date: 16th November 2023