The 30-year Infrastructure Plan has received support from nearly all of Parliament, with the government fully endorsing 13 out of 16 recommendations and committing to four additional actions.
The government supports the remaining three recommendations in principle, indicating that further work is necessary.
Both Labour and the Greens have expressed explicit backing, contributing forewords to the government’s response that appreciate the long-term, non-partisan approach, though the Greens have called for more extensive measures.
The NZ Infrastructure Commission submitted the Infrastructure Plan to the government in December and made it public in February, presenting 16 recommendations alongside 10 priorities for the upcoming decade.
Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop noted that the government’s decision in April to transfer responsibility for infrastructure project assurance away from the Treasury aligns with the plan’s recommendations, 11 of which coincide with ongoing governmental efforts.
The three priorities identified for further development include establishing predictable government funding signals, implementing multi-year budgeting, and coordinating workforce development.
For the first two priorities, the response outlines that the Treasury will explore ways to “extend the horizon” for infrastructure planning, a necessary step before shifting more funding into multi-year budgets.
Regarding workforce development, additional work is required to determine the optimal path forward, with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment collaborating with the Commission to enhance workforce data and integrate it into current policy frameworks.
The Infrastructure Minister is expected to report back on this collaboration between the Treasury and MBIE in June 2027, post-election.
Bishop affirmed that the government is already addressing all 10 priorities and has agreed to implement four further actions.
These actions include:
Reviewing the land transport funding system with public consultations beginning in June 2028
Legislating the requirement for department and Crown entity long-term investment plans and asset management reports
Mandating infrastructure providers to keep data updated in the National Infrastructure Pipeline and enhancing data quality over time
Enhancing public sector project leadership through the development of a professional standard by the Infrastructure and Public Service Commissions, creating a cross-agency directory of ‘Senior Responsible Owners’, and establishing a professional benchmark for critical leadership roles
Bishop described the plan as a “sobering wake-up call” for many, highlighting that New Zealand’s average infrastructure spending of 5.8 percent places it in the top 10 percent globally, yet it ranks in the bottom 10 percent for efficiency and fourth-to-last in asset management.
He expressed concern over the recurring nature of infrastructure plans, which have been previously produced in 2010, 2011, and 2015, with many recommendations recurring in this year’s plan.
“What sets this plan apart is its independent production by the Infrastructure Commission, separate from the government of the day,” he emphasized.
“New Zealand now has a clear plan. The next step is action … now the responsibility falls to governments – this one and those that follow – to act.”
Bishop expressed encouragement at the endorsements from Labour and the Greens for the plan and the government’s response.
Labour’s Infrastructure spokesperson Kieran McAnulty, in his foreword, criticized past Labour and National-led governments for announcing projects without securing funding, watching costs escalate, and canceling initiatives started by the opposing side.
“Every time the plan changes, we lose time, we lose money, and we lose the skilled people who build these things, too many of them to Australia. That is the problem this plan sets out to fix.”
He emphasized that the plan offers a long-term, evidence-based strategy that transcends any single government, representing a “prize bigger than any single policy”.
Labour believes the proposed path is “broadly the right one” and has worked constructively with the government “where it counts”, focusing on infrastructure development rather than claiming credit.
Green Party Infrastructure spokesperson Julie Anne Genter stated the party’s support for all 16 recommendations in the plan and urged that this commitment to long-term planning and evidence-informed decision-making continues to drive investment in long-term assets.
Nevertheless, she expressed concerns regarding the government’s response to Priority 4 – prioritizing and sequencing land transport projects – noting the current focus on new state highways conflicts with recommendations 1, 2, 7, and 13.
“The GPS also allows specified projects to circumvent the investment assurance process because they are simply deemed strategic priorities. We hold that all new major land transport projects (over $500m) go through the IPP process or similar investment assurance.”
The Greens remain skeptical about the government’s RMA reforms currently in select committee, suggesting it might be better to revert to some aspects of the NBEA and Spatial Planning Act, which had a more robust and considered development process and left less to Ministerial discretion.
Genter also called for a stronger emphasis on recommendation 15 – coordinating workforce planning, advocating for closer integration between infrastructure and workforce planning, and, like McAnulty, noted the party’s opposition to an LNG import terminal.
