NISTA joins Future Cities Forum this September

Above: Margaret Read of the National Infrastructure & Service Transformation Authority (courtesy NISTA)

Future Cities Forum is delighted that Margaret Read, Director of Strategy and Policy, National Infrastructure & Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), will be contributing to our 'Energy and Infrastructure Autumn 2025' discussion event, which is being hosted by Grimshaw in London this autumn.

Margaret was previously Director of Policy at the National Infrastructure Commission, where she led the Commission’s policy work on energy, water and wastewater, flood risk management and infrastructure resilience.

Before her role at the Commission, she worked as part of the RAPID leadership team, a joint Ofwat, Environment Agency and Drinking Water Inspectorate unit to speed up water supply infrastructure delivery.

Margaret has extensive experience leading policy development in Whitehall, principally on water supply, flood and coastal erosion risk management, access to the environment and a number of other environmental issues.

Her teams have supported Ministers in developing primary and secondary legislation and in working with delivery bodies to implement policy.

NISTA describes itself as a joint unit at the heart of government, reporting to both HM Treasury and Cabinet Office to ensure the UK government’s strategies for infrastructure and service transformation deliver the growth and opportunity the country needs, bringing key decision making closer to spending decisions in HM Treasury (HMT) and giving Ministers the levers they need to push improvements in infrastructure and service transformation to drive growth.

It aims to assist departments in overcoming challenges and obstacles to achieve their delivery objectives by advising on top-priority projects, financing options, and maintaining a strategic focus. It states that its evidence-led approach will also ensure rigour in government’s infrastructure strategy and policy making and help ensure HM Treasury’s investment decisions are well targeted.

It also intends to spearhead central government’s engagement with key industry sectors and play a crucial role in facilitating infrastructure and major capital investments. NISTA’s creation is part of a three-pronged strategy to tackle underinvestment and instability in the UK’s infrastructure systems. It is working to strengthen the institutional framework for infrastructure strategy and delivery and sits alongside the development of a 10-year infrastructure strategy to set a long-term vision, and the introduction of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill to overcome planning obstacles.

NISTA was formed on 1 April 2025 when it brought together the functions of the National Infrastructure Commission and the Infrastructure and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.