National Infrastructure Commission for Wales meeting notes: 23 April 2024

NICW

Dr David Clubb, Chair
Jenifer Baxter Deputy Chair
Eurgain Powell Commissioner
Nick Tune, Commissioner
Eluned Parrott, Commissioner
Helen Armstrong Commissioner
Aleena Khan, Commissioner

Secretariat/Welsh Government

Stuart Ingram, NICW Secretariat
Nicola Britton, NICW Secretariat

Apologies

Steve Brooks, Commissioner

The Chair welcomed Commissioners to the meeting with a check-in, celebration of success, declarations of interest and futures moment.  

Futures Moment

The Chair suggested individuals join the UK Horizon Scanning Network.  Eurgain Powell updated the group on some projects she was aware of through the PHW Pockets of the Future in the Present Initiative.  There was a brief discussion on how the flooding in Dubai illustrates the challenges of  building resilience into infrastructure.

Declarations of Interest

The Chair declared he had recently sold a woodland he owned in mid wales.  

The action tracker was noted and updated.  A meeting with the new Director with responsibility for Planning in Welsh Government is to be considered once the Chair has met with the Cabinet Secretary.  The Deputy Chair discussed her current thinking on the thought piece on grid; Nick Tune suggested a joint article, with a view to suggesting NICW is tasked with an undertaking a more strategic longer-term study.

Minutes of previous meeting were approved.

The Secretariat report was noted.

Invitations

• Nick Tune will attend the RTPI conference on 20 June
• The Renewable UK event in the Senedd was opened to all Commissioners as Chair and Deputy Chair are unable to attend.
• The Deputy Chair will attend the UK Energy Research Centre Showcase representing NICW on 30 April 
• Aleena Khan will attend the Construction Excellence Wales (CEW) awards dinner on 14 June.

Risk Register 

The Chair talked through the development of the NICW risk register, suggesting it is reviewed quarterly.  There was a discussion on whether NICW’s impact and stakeholder expectations could be logged.

Commissioner Updates

Eurgain Powell was a judge for the Construction Excellence Wales awards.

Eluned Parrott is putting together a panel for Science in the Senedd and invited a NICW member to join.  The Deputy Chair noted she was already speaking at the event via the Royal Academy of Engineering and would be happy to join a panel.

Nothing to record.

a.    Year 1 Renewable Energy Report

It was noted a formal response had still not been received from the Welsh Government.

b.    Year 2 Flood Research

Eurgain Powell updated the group noting they are now in report writing phase and the timeline discussed last month was in place. A workshop facilitated by ARUP with the PAG and the flood committee is planned for 7 June

The framing of the final flood report was discussed. In particular the balance to be struck by ensuring the report is relevant and accessible now, but also looking to the future with radical recommendations.  The Deputy Chair will contact Baroness Brown from the UK Climate Change Commission to highlight NICW’s work in this area.  

c.    Year 3 Development Of Approach To Existential Risk.  

Helen Armstrong updated the meeting on how she had been working with Steve Brooks and the Secretariat to refine the scope of the project in light of the NICW workshop.  She does have concerns about the availability of resources. The emerging priorities will be flexible once funding options are confirmed.  It was also noted that a project advisory group will not be set up for this workstream but alternative governance arrangements are being considered.

d.    IWA Infrastructure Futures Essay Collection

Submissions are still being compiled.  Publication was discussed and it was agreed the essays would be published as a series of blogs, leading to anthology collection.

e.    Futures Map

The Chair and Nick Tune reported that the project is still at the inception stage, but one option for development may be scoping a more complex project as a key deliverable for year 4 of NICW.

Action

• Contact Baroness Brown from the UK Climate Change Commission to highlight NICW’s work on flood risk: Deputy Chair
• Discuss publication options with IWA: Secretariat

The Chair led a discussion on the reports recommendations, noting the majority of recommendations were for the Welsh Government to consider and action.  Commissioners discussed their approach to conflicts of interest, agreeing they were robust but the perception of a conflict should also be noted in future meetings.  Consideration of a national infrastructure plan was discussed with Commissioners agreeing to undertake some background work on the value of such a large project.  Commissioners also discussed how they could quantify their impact, agreeing a chapter in the Annual Report could address this.

Action

• Contact other Infrastructure Commission to assess value of national assessments: Chair and Deputy Chair
   

Commissioners discussed extending their term and whether a dec 2025 or spring 2026 would be more practical in terms of workstreams and Senedd Elections.  The Chair will write to the Cabinet Secretary about extending terms.

The Chair introduced findings from a recent self-assessment exercise, noting low score around strategy.  Discussions centered on revisiting early work defining NICW’s North Star and agreeing a facilitated session to formalise thinking should be arranged.  It was agreed the self-assessment should be an annual process, along with a stakeholder survey.

Action

Arrange a development session to cover strategy: Secretariat
 

Nil

The next meeting will take place 21 May in Cardiff.