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Large infrastructure projects are at risk of becoming HS2-style white elephants unless Sir Keir Starmer gets a grip on the planning system, a leading construction chief has warned.
John Wilkinson, chief operating officer of BAM UK and Ireland, said that without the removal of red tape, big-ticket developments will not be able to attract enough overseas investment to proceed.
He also urged the Prime Minister to expand his planned infrastructure strategy from 10 years to 20, claiming this will ensure crucial long-term projects are not axed as governments change.
When asked whether Britain is at risk of being increasingly burdened by stunted projects like HS2, he said: “There’s a real danger that can happen. Unless the Government gets a hold of the planning system, that’s going to put off international investment, and the industry will always focus on where it has the greatest visibility.
“We can only be predictable when we can see a predictable pipeline of opportunity. We’ve got to have a longer-term focus on what the requirements are for the nation.”
BAM’s UK and Ireland operations, which focus on construction and civil engineering, are owned by Dutch contractor Royal BAM Group.
The company’s UK arm is currently working on projects such as the Silvertown Tunnel in London, while it was also the main contractor for Manchester’s Co-op Live arena.
While BAM’s civil engineering business remains an active supplier on HS2’s central leg near the Chiltern Tunnel, Mr Wilkinson said the delayed project remains “the biggest white elephant” that he has seen in his career.
It comes after HS2 rail link was scaled back after years of delays and billions of pounds in overspending.
Louise Haigh, the Transport Secretary, recently described the failure to deliver HS2 on time as “dire”, as she launched an independent review into the project’s finances.
Ministers are still overseeing the completion of the leg between London and Birmingham, which comes after Rishi Sunak last year confirmed the route will no longer run to Manchester.
As well as raising concerns over HS2, Mr Wilkinson also criticised the “continuous flip-flopping” around major projects such as the £8.3bn Lower Thames crossing and the £1.7bn Stonehenge tunnel.
The future of the former remains in doubt, while the latter project was scrapped by Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, shortly after Labour won the general election in July.
Such about-turns mean Britain will give up ground as a leading global construction giant, according to Mr Wilkinson.
He said: “We just can’t have this flavour of the month, so to speak, [where we say] ‘we’ll build the fastest high-speed rail network in Europe’, and then all of a sudden we find ourselves six, seven years down the line or more and we’re only taking it to Birmingham.