Press Releases

The British Property Federation (“BPF”) has published a new logistics manifesto, ‘Building the UK’s Critical Infrastructure’ calling on Government to treat logistics space as critical national infrastructure to drive economic growth, productivity and renewable power generation across the UK.

The manifesto has been published by the BPF’s Industrial Committee and Logistics Property Board, with the latter comprising senior executives from companies across the supply chain including SEGRO, Amazon, DHL, Newlands, Prologis, Wincanton and Savills. It is the second of five sector-specific documents the BPF is publishing ahead of the election to complement the BPF’s manifesto ‘Building our Future’, published in January.

The logistics manifesto sets out the vast economic contribution made by the sector, including £232 billion per year in GVA and 2.7 million direct jobs, and calls for changes to the planning system to provide more support for logistics development and upgrades to the national grid so warehousing roof space can be fully utilised for renewable power generation.

Unlocking investment to address long-term under-supply of logistics space

Since 2010 £170 billion has been invested to deliver vital logistics infrastructure but the UK continues to face a long-term undersupply of modern, well-located warehouse space. According to Savills, availability is consistently below the 8% ‘equilibrium’ level – at which supply and demand are broadly in balance -  meaning businesses may not be able to access the space they need.

In order to unlock further investment and accelerate the delivery of logistics space, the BPF is calling for Government to:

• Form a new cross-departmental Freight Planning Forum to elevate the status of logistics within Whitehall, ensuring the need for warehousing is closely aligned with the delivery and upgrade of transport infrastructure.
• Introduce a strategic planning approach, whereby decisions are made at the appropriate national or regional level, rather than by local authorities alone.
• Create more flexibility within the Local Plan systems, so real-time market data can be used to forecast future demand and determine how land is allocated. With Plans taking on average seven years to adopt, the current system means local policy cannot keep pace with changes in the economy, such as the growth of ecommerce, that increase the need for logistics space.

Utilising the logistics sector to meet the UK’s renewable energy requirements

The manifesto highlights that the logistics sector has a critical role to play in the transition to a greener economy and the UK meeting its net-zero 2050 target.

The roof space of the UK’s existing 3.6 billion sq ft of industrial and logistics buildings could be utilised to generate 15GW of solar power – 25% of the UK’s total power requirements and five times the amount projected to be generated at the Hinkley Point nuclear power station.

To harness logistics space for renewable power generation, the BPF is calling on Government to:

• Invest in faster grid connectivity so that power generated can be more easily exported
• Introduce higher ‘feed-in’ tariffs to incentivise property owners to invest in solar power infrastructure
• Provide grant funding for innovation in battery and other local energy storage solutions for logistics parks

You can read the BPF Logistics Manifesto here

David Sleath, Chief Executive at SEGRO and Chair of the BPF Logistics Property Board said: “Logistics space is critical national infrastructure, enabling the efficient movement of goods across the country and supporting millions of jobs - but we are only scratching the surface in realising its full potential.

“After years of demand outstripping supply, we can unlock significant investment and drive growth across the UK by taking a more strategic approach to planning and ensuring rapid changes in the economy are feeding through into how we allocate land.

“Furthermore, our analysis shows that warehouse buildings could hold the key to meeting the UK’s renewable energy requirements if the national grid is upgraded and Government carefully plans how to incentivise investment into solar power infrastructure and drive innovation in energy storage.

“We look forward to working with policymakers to bring forward the changes needed to maximise the contribution of the sector to the national economy.”

Benjamin Taylor, Planning Director at Newlands and BPF Logistics Property Board Member added: “There has been a shortage of logistics space for at least a decade. The combination of rapid growth in the digital economy, limited land availability and an outdated planning system have created a distorted market in which businesses cannot always access the space they need in the right locations. This in turn impacts jobs and the efficiency of supply chains, as well as increasing vehicular miles.  

“We need a change in mindset whereby logistics is prioritised in Whitehall and treated as critical infrastructure if we want the UK to be a higher-growth and lower-carbon economy.”