Funding questions over infrastructure plan

Bill English. Photo / Jason Oxenham

A group representing landlords with $40 billion-plus of real estate welcomed the Government's 30-year infrastructure plan but wants funding problems addressed.

Property Council chief executive Connal Townsend said the new plan was a great step forward in planning and gave the development community better certainty.

However, he said the plan could go further in addressing funding.

"Local government needs a suite of tools to fund efficient infrastructure. It's unfair to load the costs of infrastructure on the development community and ratepayers through development contributions and rates. Bolder funding options and innovation is required and the Government must enable this. We need a bipartisan agreement on how to fund New Zealand's future infrastructure," Townsend said.

Finance Minister Bill English yesterday announced the Thirty Year New Zealand Infrastructure Plan 2015, which sets out New Zealand's response to the infrastructure challenges it will face over the next three decades.

"Demand for infrastructure will change," English said.

"The population is ageing - from an average age of 37 today to 43 years in 2043. Some of our regions will grow as the population increases by 1.2 million by 2045, but a few are expected to shrink. Infrastructure is expensive - central and local government combined are expected to spend $11 billion on infrastructure each year for the next 10 years."

Jordan Williams of the Taxpayers Union also welcomed the plan.

"We're pretty happy with it but we're surprised that it doesn't take more account of the emerging technologies of driverless freight vehicles and cars," he said.

"That's on the horizon and will revolutionise our roading network and this doesn't address that."