Investing in such future-facing industries will be seen as a priority not only because it will help meet the Government’s net zero targets, but also because it should help to boost economic growth.
For example, The Faraday Institution, a think tank focused on batteries, predicts that growing demand for EVs will mean Britain needs the equivalent of six large gigafactories running at around 90pc capacity by the end of the decade. Seed investments from the Government could therefore pay off relatively quickly.
Other proposed priorities from the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), which provides advice to the Government, include building up a wider network of public charging points for electric vehicles, constructing a carbon transmission network to transport and store carbon dioxide, and investing up to £12bn in drainage to protect hundreds of thousands of homes from flooding.
Transport
The NIC has called for £22bn of spending to improve transport in and around Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, and Manchester.
The NIC has called for the Government to prioritise northern rail links, particularly in areas that are no longer going to be part of the HS2 development.
“The decision to cancel HS2 north of Birmingham leaves a major gap in the UK’s rail strategy around which a number of cities have based their economic growth plans,” says the Commission in its latest update on transport infrastructure.
Other major projects that may be looked at include the Lower Thames Crossing, a long delayed plan for a tunnel beneath the River Thames that would connect Kent and Essex.
The cost of the project is estimated to be around £9bn. Reports suggest the Chancellor is considering using private finance to help fund it. A decision on whether to push ahead has been delayed until the new year.
Finally, the Government may look again at whether to take HS2 all the way to Euston, rather than terminating at Old Oak Common. Recent reports suggest a private finance initiative-style deal is also being looked at here.