The National Infrastructure Commission has published its Infrastructure Progress Review 2024 – the Commission’s annual assessment of government progress on infrastructure strategy and delivery in priority areas.

The review finds that over the last 12 months, progress has been mixed. There has been continued expansion in the reach of digital networks, and devolution deals for several city regions to offer them the ability to plan their own infrastructure strategies, as the Commission has long advocated. But at the same time, take up of electrified home heating options remains too low, and policy changes on rail strategy have created uncertainty.

The Commission’s second National Infrastructure Assessment, published last October, set out a costed package of recommendations covering many of these areas.

Looking ahead to the government’s formal response to the Assessment, the Infrastructure Progress Review 2024 looks back on progress over the last year and sets out what the Commission advises should be prioritised over the next five years.

On water, the NIC highlighted that demand for water has plateaued rather than fallen, compounding risks to future supply. Meanwhile network leaks are not being fixed at the rates required to meet the industry’s own targets, and weather conditions led to a rise in leakage levels for most companies during 2022/23.

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The NIC’s analysis follows a recent decision in the High Court that the government’s climate strategy is  not fit-for-purpose, and therefore breaches the UK Climate Change Act.