UK Infrastructure Bank Act 2023

2 Objectives and activities U.K.

(1) The Bank must secure that its articles of association contain a statement of its objects.

(2) The statement must provide that the Bank’s objects are restricted to delivering the Bank’s objectives through the exercise of the Bank’s activities.

(3) The Bank’s objectives are—

(a) to help tackle climate change, including by supporting efforts to meet the target for 2050 set out in section 1 of the Climate Change Act 2008, and

(b) to support regional and local economic growth.

(4) The Bank’s activities are—

(a) providing financial assistance to projects wholly or mainly relating to infrastructure,

(b) providing loans to public authorities for such projects,

(c) acting as a centre of expertise and providing advisory and other support services in relation to such projects, and

(d) any other activities that are incidental or conducive to, or otherwise connected with, anything in paragraphs (a) to (c).

(5) The Bank may only provide any of the support listed in subsection (4) to water companies if they have produced a costed, time limited plan demonstrating they are committed to preventing discharge.

(6) Infrastructure includes nature-based solutions, technologies and facilities relating to—

(a) water, electricity, gas, telecommunications, sewerage or other services (including the provision of heat and, in relation to electricity, gas and the provision of heat, energy efficiency),

(b) railways (including rolling stock), roads or other forms of transport, and

(c) climate change (including the removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere).

(7) The Treasury may by regulations made by statutory instrument amend this section so as to change—

(a) the Bank’s activities, or

(b) the meaning of infrastructure.

(8) The Treasury must consult the appropriate national authority before making provision in regulations under subsection (7) that would be within the legislative competence of—

(a) the Scottish Parliament, if contained in an Act of that Parliament,

(b) Senedd Cymru, if contained in an Act of the Senedd, or

(c) the Northern Ireland Assembly, if contained in an Act of that Assembly made without the Secretary of State’s consent,

apart from provision that is merely incidental to, or consequential on, provision which would be outside that competence.

(9) A statutory instrument containing regulations under subsection (7) may not be made unless a draft of the instrument has been laid before and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.

Commencement Information

I1 S. 2 in force at 23.5.2023, see s. 11(2)