Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / Nick Leggett: Infrastructure New Zealand CEO on the report discussing the long-term spending demands for infrastructure

Transcript

Nick Leggett: Infrastructure New Zealand CEO on the report discussing the long-term spending demands for infrastructure · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Infrastructure Commission's got to report out this morning. It says
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: we're about in the right place at the moment, or
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: at least on par with other OECD countries in terms
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: of our infrastructure, which might surprise some people. However, they
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: do caution that future investment is needed. It's looked at
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: population changes and what we could need with a change
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: in climate and natural hazards to secure our infrastructure long term.
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: Nick Leggett is Infrastructure New Zealand's chief executive. He's with
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  Speaker 1: us this morning. Hey Nick, Hello Ryan, Good to have
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  Speaker 1: you on the show again. This is interesting that they're
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  Speaker 1: saying we're basically on par and well compared to the
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  Speaker 1: media and OECD country We have a typical amount of
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  Speaker 1: physical infrastructure per capita. Is that surprising.
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  Speaker 2: It's not surprising because we know that on the per
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  Speaker 2: capita we spend around about what other OECD nation spend.
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  Speaker 2: But it's not what or how much we spend, it's
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  Speaker 2: the quality of the spend and what we get for
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  Speaker 2: it that is our problem. We're in the bottom four
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  Speaker 2: in terms of the efficiency we get from our infrastructure
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  Speaker 2: and the way we manage our assets. That's poor as well,
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  Speaker 2: and I think key Wes can probably feel that they
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  Speaker 2: know we've got big challenges and water. They know that
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  Speaker 2: our roading and rail networks have not been well maintained,
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  Speaker 2: and that's really the key. We have a bit of
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  Speaker 2: a set and forget attitude in this country where it
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  Speaker 2: comes to infrastructure. We build stuff, but we don't maintain it,
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  Speaker 2: and a big chunk of what we call our infrastructure
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  Speaker 2: deficit is actually that failure to invest in those assets
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  Speaker 2: we've already got. The other thing Ryan about this is,
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  Speaker 2: you know, it does show us that there are challenges
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  Speaker 2: long term and that actually as a country we're pretty
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  Speaker 2: low in terms of where we rank on the scale
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  Speaker 2: of infrastructure overall. And of course these are different measures.
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: There's some good stuff in here. I think the most
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  Speaker 2: important thing is that it says that long term we've
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  Speaker 2: got to be thinking about the factors are going to
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  Speaker 2: influence what sort of country we become and infrastructure using viewers.
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: New Zealand needs a vision. It needs to know what
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: kind of country it aspires to be. That is, how
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  Speaker 2: many people we're going to have, where they're going to live.
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  Speaker 2: What's the sort of competitive advantage that we need in
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  Speaker 2: our economy that we're going to be able to sell
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  Speaker 2: things to the rest of the world effectively. We're going
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  Speaker 2: to be competitive, We're going to be really productive. Now,
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  Speaker 2: infrastructure is the means to getting there, but you've got
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  Speaker 2: to have a really clear united bi partisan picture, as
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  Speaker 2: other successful small countries have done.
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  Speaker 1: And we know we know that. But there is some hope,
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  Speaker 1: right the National Infrastructure Agency is going to kick off
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  Speaker 1: what December. Hopefully that will bring everyone around the table
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  Speaker 1: and we'll be come by. Just one quick question for you.
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  Speaker 1: Our birth rates going down, Immigration will drive our population increase.
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  Speaker 1: Do we need a bipart as an immigration plan so
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  Speaker 1: that we have certainty over the flow?
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  Speaker 2: Well, I think that flow and certainty are two very
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  Speaker 2: good points where it comes to infrastructure as well. You've
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  Speaker 2: got to know how where your population's going, right, because
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  Speaker 2: you need to be able to estimate and plan and build.
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  Speaker 2: The reason we don't get that efficiency out of our spend.
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  Speaker 2: You know, we're in the bottom four countries and the
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  Speaker 2: OECD is because the pipeline keeps getting cut. When there's
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: a change of government, so the industry scales up because
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  Speaker 2: they've got some certainty for the next couple of years
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  Speaker 2: and the new government will come in and change the priorities.
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  Speaker 2: What we've got to do is get consistency. We're a
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  Speaker 2: small country and a small market. When you stop work,
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  Speaker 2: you take capacity out of the market, people go elsewhere,
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  Speaker 2: and it takes money and time to build that back up.
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  Speaker 2: What bipartisanship will get us as a nation is a
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  Speaker 2: bit more security and a bit more forward planning, so
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  Speaker 2: the pipeline can be a bit more even, and I
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  Speaker 2: think that's what the Infrastructure Commission is building towards. What
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  Speaker 2: we've got to do is demand that of both of
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  Speaker 2: our major political parties, because we shouldn't politicize stuff that
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  Speaker 2: really isn't party political. This is about good infrastructure that
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  Speaker 2: keeps you Zealand move and keeps U Zealand healthy and safe.
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: Nick, thanks so much for your time this morning. Nick Leggett,
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: who is with US Infrastructure New Zealand Chief Executive. For
• 4:08
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