Infrastructure Strategy 2027-2037: consultation

Chapter 3 - Scope and Role of the Infrastructure Strategy

Infrastructure is the set of long-term assets that enable countries, cities, and communities to function effectively. Infrastructure is all around us and can be private or public; economic, social or natural. This strategy covers Scottish public economic and environmental, social and natural infrastructure but also traces out the links to private and UK public infrastructure (and regulatory bodies) that are crucial to Scotland’s future.

What is Infrastructure?

Different types of infrastructure (and relevant regulatory bodies) can serve several purposes at the same time. The table below sets out the key elements (noting that many assets can sit in multiple categories and that infrastructure is not limited to buildings and structures but includes the equipment needed to deliver the service).

Economic

Scottish public

• Road networks
• Rail rolling stock
• Ferries and harbours
• Regional Airports: HIAL (Highlands and Islands Airports Limited)
• Flood protection
• Marine laboratories
• Marine protection and research vessels
• Scottish Water: water and wastewater treatment works and associated networks
• Water Industry Commission for Scotland – Water regulator

Relevant UK public

• Rail network
• Roads to Scotland
• Air traffic control
• Rail regulator

Private Third sector

• Energy networks
• Power plants
• Communication and digital networks
• Aircraft and airports
• Lorry, bus, and car fleets
• Ferries, other ships & harbours
• Factories
• Offices, retail buildings, storage buildings, etc.
• Energy regulator
• Communications regulator

Social

Scottish public

• Hospitals
• Council-run care homes
• Schools and colleges
• Libraries and leisure facilities
• Police
• Courts
• Fire service
• Prisons
• Museums and heritage
• Council housing
• Administration offices
• Historic buildings
• Housing

Relevant UK public

• Defence assets

Private Third sector

• Housing
• Care homes
• Most GP practices
• Dentists
• Ophthalmologists
• Some hospitals and clinics
• Leisure facilities
• Property flood resilience
• Historic buildings
• Community-owned assets
• Parks
• Universities

Natural

Scottish public

• Land and natural capital owned by:
• Crown Estate Scotland
• Forestry and Land Scotland
• NatureScot
• Scottish Water
• SG Crofting Agricultural Holdings
• Local authorities (parks, beaches, dunes, etc.)
• Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Relevant UK public

-

Private Third sector

• Peatland
• National parks
• Most agricultural land and forests
• Crofting land
• Land of High Nature Value
• Designated sites/protected areas including 30x30 sites

The relationship between Scottish public infrastructure, UK public infrastructure, and private/regulated assets is shaped by governance structures, funding mechanisms, and policy priorities.

• Scottish Public Infrastructure is primarily funded and governed by the Scottish Government, with input from Local Authorities and, in some cases, Scottish Futures Trust.
• UK Public Infrastructure is governed by the UK Government, but also influences Scottish projects through funding (e.g., Barnett Formula) and shared systems.
• Private Regulated Assets (utilities, telecoms, etc.) are influenced by UK Regulators (Ofgem, Ofcom, ORR) and user charges, with indirect policy influence from both governments.

What the Infrastructure Strategy Covers

This Strategy sets out a framework for Scottish public infrastructure planning and investment and the way we invest in this infrastructure through a place-based approach.

It also covers how we promote private sector infrastructure investment in Scotland in priority sectors.

Where relevant, it traces the connections to private infrastructure such as national energy grids, and telecommunication networks, which are governed and regulated at the UK level but are key, for example, for the Scottish Government’s offshore ambitions.

This document does not include a pipeline of infrastructure programmes and projects, which is developed separately through spending reviews and budget processes and is set out in the Infrastructure Delivery Pipeline.

Why a 10-Year Framework Matters

The Infrastructure Strategy sets out a 10-year framework to guide infrastructure planning, funding and delivery across Scotland. It is designed to inform capital allocations in Spending Reviews and annual budget decisions, ensuring that investment is strategic, outcome-focused, and aligned with long-term national priorities.

Linking Long-Term Needs to Short-Term Decisions

The Strategy is predominantly underpinned by a 30-year Needs Assessment, prepared by the Scottish Futures Trust, which identifies the key drivers of infrastructure demand and helps shape and inform future investment decisions.

Improving Infrastructure Delivery

To ensure the Strategy remains relevant and responsive to changing circumstances we intend to refresh it every five years, in line with parliamentary cycles. The diagram below provides a timeframe for and illustrates how the different planning and funding documents interact to support a coherent infrastructure investment framework:

Infrastructure Framework

This framework shows how Scotland’s infrastructure planning and funding documents interact over different timescales to create a coherent investment approach.

Timeframe and Key Components:

• 30-year Needs Assessment – Purpose: Sets the long-term context for infrastructure planning and identifies future drivers of demand. Frequency: Refreshed every 5 years.
• 10-year Infrastructure Strategy – Purpose: Provides a strategic framework for infrastructure priorities and links long-term needs to medium-term planning. Frequency: Refreshed every 5 years.
• Spending Review – Purpose: Prioritises portfolio allocations. Frequency: Every 2-3 years.
• Annual Budget – Purpose: Allocates funding for investment priorities identified in the Spending Review. Frequency: Annually

Supporting Delivery Documents:

Delivery Pipeline: Tracks projects from planning through delivery
Future Projects: List projects awaiting funding approval
Investment Programmes: Longer-term allocations aligned with sector objectives.  

Goal:

To improve infrastructure delivery by aligning long-term needs with short-term decisions, ensuring funding certainty and strategic coherence across planning cycles.

This framework provides a structured approach to improving infrastructure planning and delivery. A key purpose of the long-term Strategy is to enable well-defined decisions, supported by robust governance, that guide funding priorities, establish value for money and shape the investment pipeline. The pipeline reflects public sector demand for construction and infrastructure delivery in Scotland.

While the previous Infrastructure Investment Plan pipeline offered a starting point, unforeseen funding constraints and rising costs rendered parts of it obsolete. As a result, the next pipeline will be shaped by Spending Review and budget decisions, rather than being directly set out in the Strategy.

To support this, the Programme and Projects Portfolio highlighted in the Infrastructure Framework is structured into three distinct elements:

• Future Projects: a prioritised list of projects awaiting funding.
• Investment programmes: longer-term allocations aligned with sectoral objectives.
• Infrastructure Delivery Pipeline: tracks projects from procurement through to delivery, once cost and scheduling are confirmed.

Refreshing the Strategy for Future Relevance

Our ambition is to develop a rolling 10-year infrastructure strategy that links long-term infrastructure needs with annual budget decisions to guide investment planning and delivery. Given the long lead-in times for infrastructure programmes, this approach will help ensure funding is planned on appropriate timescales. However, due to the short-term nature of UK budget certainty, assumptions will be required for capital allocations beyond current review periods.

Questions

1. Do you agree with the scope and role of the Infrastructure Strategy?

2. Do you think the proposed framework, linking the 30-year Needs Assessment, 10‑year Infrastructure Strategy, Spending Reviews and annual Budgets will support improved strategic planning and delivery? Are there any further improvements you want to suggest?