
2 August 2018 – Outgoing Infrastructure Australia (IA) Chief Executive, Philip Davies has announced the release of a set of new guidelines that the independent statutory body hopes will drive greater transparency and accountability in infrastructure decision-making and reduce instances of major projects receiving funding before appropriate planning and assessment has been released.
The new principles, which IA hopes will be applied by governments and project proponents across the country and included as part of the National Partnership Agreement negotiations between the Australian Government and the states and territories, were developed as part of a list of recommendations in the 2016 Australian Infrastructure Plan. According to IA, the focus of the guidelines is ensuring major public infrastructure investments deliver the best outcomes for the community and the best value for taxpayers while promoting greater accountability and transparency.
Richard Lewis, Director at Iron Capital Group, said, “While there is little need for more red tape that constricts industry, with such vast public and private investment flowing into infrastructure projects across the country, guidelines such as these from IA do provide the sector with some timely direction that puts the community’s needs front and centre.”
Infrastructure Australia – Infrastructure Decision-making Principles:
A full copy of the Infrastructure Decision-making Principles can be found here.