The Competition and Markets Authority has said the way road and rail infrastructure is bought and delivered across the UK is too short-term and too fragmented, warning that a more coordinated approach could save as much as £5bn a year.
In findings from its 11-month market study, the regulator argued that public procurement in civil engineering is being held back by weak visibility over future work, contracts that are often too closely tied to spending review cycles, and a syst...
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em that makes it harder for firms to build long-term capacity. The CMA said the result is higher costs, slower delivery and less room for innovation.
Its proposed remedies are wide-ranging. They include a sector plan for civil engineering on roads and rail, longer contract terms that go beyond the period of budget settlements, and a UK-wide infrastructure pipeline that would give suppliers a clearer picture of forthcoming work. The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority does publish a pipeline, but the CMA noted that it does not cover road and rail schemes planned by devolved governments and arm’s-length bodies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The authority also wants public bodies to simplify supplier accreditation processes, which it says are often duplicated and overly bureaucratic. According to the report, many firms in the sector rely heavily on subcontracting, a pattern the CMA believes could be reduced if funding and project pipelines were more certain, allowing companies to invest in their own skills, plant and direct delivery capability.
The study did not find evidence that risk is routinely misplaced across projects, but it did hear concerns that risk is sometimes pushed too far down the supply chain. It called for a review of so-called Z clauses , bespoke additions to standard contracts , to strip out outdated provisions that can distort risk allocation.
The CMA also urged the use of the government’s Construction Playbook, a guidance framework designed to improve how public works are assessed, procured and delivered. That advice comes against a backdrop of criticism from the Construction Leadership Council, which said last year that Whitehall was often failing to follow the playbook’s principles.
Sarah Cardell, the CMA’s chief executive, said the market was being held back by a “short-term and fragmented approach” that was driving up costs and slowing delivery. Marie-Claude Hemming, policy director at the Association for Consultancy and Engineering, called on ministers to act, arguing for multi-year funding settlements, stronger procurement capability and rules that encourage innovation and SME participation rather than obstructing them.
The findings follow the launch of the CMA’s review into the civil engineering market for roads and railways, which government said was aimed at identifying ways to improve productivity, reduce costs and support growth. An interim report published earlier in the process pointed to persistent inefficiencies, low investment and high costs, with the final recommendations now set to shape the debate over how Britain plans and pays for major transport infrastructure.
Source: Noah Wire Services
