A bold approach to public-private partnerships (PPPs) is urgently required to accelerate infrastructure delivery and stimulate economic growth across the North of England and the wider UK, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) will argue today.

Speaking at the UK’s Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF) in Leeds, CBI Chief Executive Rain Newton-Smith will urge political and business leaders to move past outdated debates regarding the historical Private Finance Initiative (FI) model. Instead, she will call for a stable, credible framework to attract private investment into public projects.

While acknowledging government progress on planning reform and the launch of a new infrastructure strategy, Ms Newton-Smith will stress that "plans alone don’t pour concrete." Delivering essential infrastructure requires renewed confidence and consistency between the public and private sectors.

"For almost all of the last 20 years, the UK has had the lowest investment in our fixed assets of all the G7," Ms Newton-Smith will say. "That’s not because the money isn’t out there – it is. The problem is confidence.

"We don’t have a consistent, reliable model for private capital to partner – with public projects.

"Only private investment can do that. Especially in a threadbare fiscal environment – delivering with public money alone is a fantasy. There’s no magic money tree."

The comments coincide with the launch of a joint report by the CBI and law firm Browne Jacobson at the Leeds conference. The publication, titled Pipeline to Progress – Making UK Infrastructure Investable, outlines the scale of the UK’s infrastructure deficit and proposes a modernised PPP framework.

Craig Elder, partner in public procurement at Browne Jacobson, said: "Although learning from the past and building on what worked in previous models, this report is resolutely forward‑looking. It focuses on practical approaches that can be implemented now to set out a legal and contractual framework that enables public and private sector collaboration when tackling the UK’s infrastructure deficit.

"The market is clear: there is appetite to support UK infrastructure where risk is balanced, pipelines are credible and contracting is agile. Clarity of intent is a vital signal that government can make to crowd in investment."

The CBI will warn that failing to reform infrastructure funding mechanism risks undermining the UK’s global competitiveness, particularly when compared to North American and Australian markets.

"For too long, this government and its predecessor have been afraid of a ghost – and it’s called PFI," Ms Newton-Smith will say. "I think now is the time to face that fear head-on.

"In the last 8 years since we blocked new PFIs in England, over 1000 new PPPs have successfully reached financial close around the world. Our competitors in the US, Canada and Australia have reformed PPP models that work. Clear pipelines that bring in investment and turn out results – on time. This is one of the biggest opportunities we’re missing."

The business group will also highlight the critical role of regional metro mayors—such as those leading West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, and the Liverpool City Region—in driving investment. Ms Newton-Smith will argue that local leaders are currently constrained by short-term funding settlements and complex, competitive bidding processes.

"Instead of a patchwork of powers, where investors don't know who can do what, we need a standard devolution offer that’s wider and deeper," she will say. "Where mayors have the power to do more. The funding certainty to do it. And where central government trusts regions – sets the guardrails then gets out of the way. A system not of micromanagement, but earned autonomy."

The address will conclude with a call to transform delayed schemes into shovel-ready projects capable of delivering the hospitals, schools, and transport networks required for regional communities.

"Infrastructure is where growth stops being a slogan and becomes real, positive change for people," Ms Newton-Smith will say. "The time has come to look ahead – to what business and government can achieve together for the good of our communities, economy, and future."