Proper planning means better infrastructure

There are few more dangerous places to stand than between a politician and an infrastructure announcement.

However, as the nation’s independent infrastructure adviser, Infrastructure Australia has a mandate to stand in that place and ensure every infrastructure dollar is spent in the best interests of the Australian people.

With the “Super Saturday”
by-elections this weekend and federal and state elections on the horizon, governments and oppositions must resist the urge to commit funding to projects before appropriate planning and assessment has been completed.

Governments at all levels need to be more disciplined on infrastructure planning.

That means identifying an infrastructure problem, evaluating all available options to solve it, and rigorously analysing the likely economic, social and environmental impacts of a potential project before a funding announcement.

Of course, governments and oppositions can still rightly propose infrastructure priorities to their constituents. But where this happens, project funding must be conditional on identifying the best solution through a proper business case. Without this analysis, there is a risk of committing to the wrong projects or gold-plated projects while denying vital funding to other, worthier investments.

Infrastructure Australia maintains the Infrastructure Priority List to provide decision-makers with a credible pipeline of future infrastructure investments.

It provides a longer-term view of infrastructure investment, a view that goes beyond the forward estimates, and a view that is untainted by the electoral cycle.

But too often we see commitments being made to projects before a business case has been prepared, a full set of options has been considered, and rigorous analysis of a potential project’s benefits and costs has been undertaken.

This year’s federal budget allocated $250 million to a major project business case fund that will allow states and territories to develop business cases to plan properly. Planning may not be the political dynamite of a ribbon-cutting but this is a mature start.

This must also come with a commitment from all sides of politics to ensure decision-making on public infrastructure projects stands up to scrutiny.

As we begin compiling the next Infrastructure Priority List, we have moved to set a new benchmark for transparency and accountability in infrastructure decision-making.

Today we release the Infrastructure Decision-making Principles, which should act as a guide for governments and give the community a clear set of expectations with which to hold decision-makers to account.

The release delivers on a recommendation in the 2016 Australian Infrastructure Plan as these guidelines will ensure major public infrastructure investments deliver the best outcomes for the community and the best value for taxpayers. We want to ensure community needs are properly understood, that all options are considered and communities are consulted before commitments to projects are made.

We also want to see Australia’s governments do more to engage with communities. This involves incorporating community input in a meaningful way, and being more transparent around project decision-making by publicly releasing relevant documents.

In releasing these guidelines, we are not focused on past decisions. Rather, we are focused on what can be achieved if we invest in projects that bring strong productivity benefits for the economy and support our quality of life.

Governments should embrace the Infrastructure Decision-making Principles to give the community added confidence that decisions on infrastructure are robust, transparent and accountable, and in Australia’s best interest.

Philip Davies is chief executive of Infrastructure Australia.