Lord Adonis resigns Labour whip to chair Government Infrastructure Commission

It will be announced tomorrow that Andrew Adonis will become chair of the Government’s Infrastructure Commission.

Adonis, a peer, has resigned the Labour whip in the House of Lords to take up the role, as is normal for peers taking up independent bodies. In 2010, Frank Field and Alan Milburn were criticised were for taking roles advising the Government on poverty and social mobility.

The National Infrastructure Commission is a policy from Labour’s manifesto this year, and Adonis was on the review that proposed it.

We’ll update the story with more as we get it.

UPDATE: Andrew Adonis is today expected to comment on his appointment, with a statement emphasising the importance of big improvements in infrastructure projects, especially in transport and energy. He will say:

“Without big improvements to its transport and energy systems, Britain will grind to a halt. I am pleased to accept the chancellor’s invitation to establish the National Infrastructure Commission as an independent body able to advise government and parliament on priorities.

“Major infrastructure projects like Crossrail and building major new power stations span governments and parliaments. I hope it will be possible to forge a wide measure of agreement, across society and politics, on key infrastructure requirements for the next 20 to 30 years, and the assessments which have underpinned them.”

A spokesperson for Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said that the Tories’ record on infrastructure is a “complete failure to deliver” and that they still don’t “understand the desperate need for serious long-term investment in infrastructure”.

Former Labour leader in the Lord Jan Royall today praised Adonis, saying that he will do a “great job for Britain”: