The public need to be convinced that tough choices on upgrading national infrastructure are necessary, according to a new poll of more than 1000 members of the public by Ipsos MORI for the CBI.

The research shows that the government and businesses need to do a much better job of explaining the UK’s infrastructure investment needs, shifting the focus to why it matters locally and what benefits projects will bring.

It reveals that two thirds of people (65%) agree that decisions should be delayed so that the public’s views can be heard properly, even if this means that infrastructure weaknesses are not tackled when they need to be. This compares with only 24% who don’t think decisions should be delayed. People are currently more concerned by the inconvenience and potential disruption of upgrade work than the risk of failing to act.

The CBI-commissioned research shows a stark disconnect between the need to invest in infrastructure to ensure the long-term success of the economy, to support businesses to grow and compete internationally and general public perception. Nearly half of respondents are satisfied with the state of national infrastructure, with only a quarter (27%) dissatisfied. However, according to the World Economic Forum the UK ranks only 28th in the world for the quality of infrastructure.

According to the CBI, most public opposition which results in delays to large infrastructure projects like new power generation, roads, rail and aviation capacity, is due to a lack of relevant information, failure to tackle residents’ legitimate concerns and using the wrong decision-makers and spokespeople.

The CBI argues that infrastructure needs to be ‘sold’ to the public based on:

• The quality of life for local people - cited by 46% of respondents
• Local job opportunities - cited by 44%
• Local environment - cited by 37%.

The CBI poll found that people overwhelmingly trust technical experts to make national infrastructure decisions over politicians (64% versus 22%).  However, they also want their voice to be heard - when asked who they most trusted to represent local views about a project 42% said “me and people like me”.

“We are simply telling the wrong story on infrastructure”

Commenting on the results, John Cridland, CBI Director-General, said:

“Our research reveals a major disconnect between what infrastructure investment we need for our long-term economic success compared with what the public accepts. We urgently need to upgrade our energy infrastructure to avoid future power shortages, for example.

“To bridge this perception gap government and businesses need to redouble their efforts to tell a convincing human interest story, which people can relate to and which explains the urgency of the investment the UK needs.

“We are simply telling the wrong story on infrastructure. Rather than talking about gross domestic product and fiscal multipliers, we should be explaining about the local economy, a boost in local jobs for local businesses, like cafes, B&Bs and construction firms.

“The public will delay decisions if their views haven’t been heard - proper consultation and community engagement must be built in from the start or it will come back to bite the project later on.

“The public trust technical experts to make infrastructure decisions, rather than politicians, so the CBI would like to see all parties consider the merits of the Armitt Review, which suggested setting up an independent national infrastructure decision-making body.”

Click here to download Building Trust - Making the Public Case for Infrastructure