Welcome to the UKREiiF opinion series! We’ve gained exclusive access to the opinions of leaders from across our industry. Stay tuned to find out thoughts on the important issues that affect the UK Built Environment.

By Pete Gladwell, Pete Gladwell, Group Social Impact & Investment Director at Legal & General

The recent party conferences highlighted the pressing need for investment in our country. While emphasis on each sector differed between parties, the role that housing, infrastructure, health, and the transition to net zero could play in generating genuinely inclusive growth was consistent.

In order to support the UK’s growth ambitions and create a more equitable society, it has never been more important to create meaningful partnerships with the public sector to harness the power of pensions. Through meaningful partnerships, we can deliver socially oriented investment to enhance lives and communities. Furthermore, we can be ambitious about creating transport and grid infrastructure that generates local economic growth, connects people to opportunity, provides urgently needed housing, and reduces the cost of transport and energy along with associated emissions.

It’s wrong to expect the taxpayer alone to provide the necessary investment. With the ability to “crowd in” the right types of investment and the innovative funding methods discussed at both conferences, such as land value capture and patient, socially-oriented investment models to create new towns and growth corridors, we can deliver at pace and scale.

Reaching net zero

The transition to net zero can improve the lives of people across the country by generating employment, mitigating fuel poverty, creating stable returns for their pension pots, and promoting good growth and local employment while reducing carbon emissions. We need to resist the temptation to create divisive environmental policies and instead focus on meeting any anxiety people may feel with policies, schemes, and innovations that bring hope and empower people to participate. Imagine a future where people’s pensions and savings are invested in heat pumps, retrofitting homes, and clean energy sources like wind and solar, transitioning the nation from fossil fuel dependence to a zero-carbon environment.

The transition to a net-zero economy will not only address the climate crisis but also create significant economic growth and job opportunities in a range of functions, from manufacturing and installing renewable energy systems to developing and implementing energy-efficient technologies. To achieve this, the UK needs a stable and robust strategy from the government and, again, engagement and collaboration with socially-oriented investment, blending regulation and incentives to guide the market.

A housing revolution

The government’s target of 300,000 new homes a year has never been met, and affordable housing is becoming more challenging to deliver in the context of higher interest rates and inflation. Meeting these needs requires national and local collaboration coupled with modernisation of planning and construction, improvements to funding, and a change in culture.

Collaboration is the linchpin in all of this. The need for the sector—from planners to developers to funders to advisors—to unite around a clear social mission is paramount. L&G welcomed strategies set out at recent party conferences that take a holistic view of the current barriers that are holding us back from delivering ambitious outcomes.

Empowering democracy

Local and regional governments play a pivotal role in this landscape. Regional devolution has paved the way for cities to work together, but it needs to go further and be funded sustainably. At Legal & General, we’re closely engaged with many local authorities across the UK, supporting them with investment in this difficult time and looking for opportunities to do more. Our existing partnerships with local authorities have supported them in delivering sustainable solutions that both improve the lives of the community and help them regain some control of their costs and enhance their revenue positions. For example, we have invested in homes that provide refuge for those who would otherwise be homeless, which also saves on the costs arising from expensive and temporary hotel accommodations. These partnerships have been focused on identifying and meeting social needs rather than an adversarial and unnecessary procurement process.

For me, the party conferences have underscored the pressing need for investment and collaboration in our country. By harnessing the power of socially-oriented investment and fostering collaboration across sectors, we can chart a path towards a brighter, more sustainable future for all. The time for action is now, and with the right strategies and partnerships in place, we look forward to reporting back on what’s been delivered this time next year!

By Pete Gladwell, Group Social Impact and Investment Director, Legal & General