Press Release - The Thames Gateway: Laying the
Foundations
23 May 2007
The National Audit Office has today called for a step change
improvement in how central government departments work with each
other and with regional and local bodies, if the Government’s
ambitious aspirations for the Thames Gateway region are to be
realised.
The Government has set out its vision to make the Thames
Gateway, the area stretching from Canary Wharf to the mouth of the
Thames Estuary, a world-class region with unrivalled locations for
working and living and environmental sustainability.
However, the NAO calls on the Department for Communities and
Local Government to improve its programme management: making its
plans more coherent; and ensuring that investment is better
targeted and that risks are better identified and managed.
The development of the Thames Gateway requires close cooperation
between many government departments and their executive agents. The
report reveals that many local partners believe Whitehall has much
to do to provide a well-coordinated and joined-up approach.
In response to this need and in line with one of the NAO’s
recommendations, the Department has introduced a cross-government
board of senior officials to coordinate central government
investment and provide stronger leadership.
The report stresses that the Government still does not have a
single overall, fully costed plan for the programme to join up
local initiatives, commit central government to key infrastructure
projects, and consider progress across funding streams. Without
such a plan, it is difficult to provide an overall picture of what
needs to be done and identify the additional investment needed to
help ensure resources are targeted at critical projects. The
Department expects to publish a plan that meets these requirements
later this year to follow the strategic plan and development
prospectus that it published in November 2006.
The Government has a vision for high quality, low carbon
footprint, and sustainable developments in the region. However, it
has not yet translated these aspirations into clear objectives,
built them into local strategies, or developed plans to achieve
them. The Government also wants 50 per cent of housing developments
to be “good” or “very good” by 2010* but a recent quality audit
found only 17 per cent of new buildings fell into these
categories.
The Government estimates that its total investment in the region
has been £7 billion since 2003, of which Communities and Local
Government allocated £673 million. However, the report says that
much more investment is needed to deliver the necessary
infrastructure and services for sustainable communities to flourish
in the Thames Gateway.
Government investment has helped to bring about a number of
successful projects and initiatives but delivering appropriate
transport infrastructure remains a major challenge. In part, this
is because more needs to be done to engage transport agencies in
spatial planning for the Thames Gateway.
The Government has set targets for 160,000 new homes to be built
in the Gateway between 2001 and 2016. The number of homes delivered
has risen from around 4,500 in 1995-96 to 6,000 in 2005-06. This
rate of increase is below that of the rest of the Greater South
East. The build rate will need to double from now on if the target
is to be met.
The Department has established a network of partners to
coordinate the overlapping responsibilities of the various planning
and delivery bodies in the Thames Gateway. However, the complexity
of the network may deter investors from engaging with the
programme.
Sir John Bourn, head of the NAO, said today:
“The Thames Gateway is the most ambitious regeneration and
development programme in Western Europe. If these ambitions are to
be realised it is crucial that there is stronger cross-government
leadership and clearer objectives for local partners to work
towards. An overall programme plan to coordinate projects and give
a live picture of what has been achieved and what remains to be
done is an urgent priority.”
Notes for Editors:
- Press notices and reports are available from the date of
publication on the NAO website, which is at www.nao.org.uk. Hard
copies can be obtained from The Stationery Office on 0845 702
3474.
- The Comptroller and Auditor General, Sir John Bourn, is the
head of the National Audit Office which employs some 850 staff. He
and the NAO are totally independent of Government. He certifies the
accounts of all Government departments and a wide range of other
public sector bodies; and he has statutory authority to report to
Parliament on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which
departments and other bodies have used their resources.
- The National Audit Office has produced a companion publication
looking at how seven European cities have managed their
regeneration. This is available at www.nao.org.uk from Wednesday 23
May 2007.
* Ratings of 'good' and 'very good' as assessed in the
Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment’s housing
quality audits.
Press Notice 27/07
All enquiries to Mark Anderson, NAO Press Office: Tel: 020 7798
7558
Mobile: 07796 937 119