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The government has officially launched the new merger between the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA).

The National Infrastructure and Service Authority (NISTA) is aiming to accelerate the delivery of major projects including roads, railways and hospitals by bringing strategy and delivery under one roof. 

It is currently being led by interim chief executive Jean-Christopher Gray, the former official spokesperson for David Cameron and former private secretary to Prince William. 

A permanent chief executive will be announced shortly, a spokesperson for the Treasury said.

Chief secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones, who is acting as responsible minister for NISTA, said the new combined body will 鈥済et a grip on the delays to infrastructure delivery that for too long have plagued our global reputation with investors鈥�.

鈥淭oday we are ushering in a new era for infrastructure delivery, restoring the confidence of businesses to invest and driving a decade of national renewal, powering growth across the country, and delivering on our Plan for Change,鈥� he said.

>> See also: Mega-projects need stronger governance, says spending watchdog

The government has also launched a new guide for successful project delivery containing advice on how to lead and manage major programmes. 

Known as the Teal Book, it is designed to work alongside the Treasury Green Book and other central guidance to make project delivery simpler, more efficient and more productive.

The launch of NISTA and the Teal Book is part of a government drive to address what it describes as 鈥渇undamental constraints鈥� to infrastructure investment, sitting alongside a 10-year infrastructure strategy.

The plan also includes the new Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which has proposed a loosening of planning rules to reduce delays and cost overruns on major projects.

The creation of NISTA has been welcomed by the institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), which described the body as a 鈥渉uge opportunity鈥� to bridge the gap between strategic need and delivery.

But the ICE has called for an 鈥渋ndependent voice鈥� to be a key part of the new body鈥檚 structure to ensure decision makers do not 鈥渟hy away from difficult questions鈥�.

Its other recommendations include building cross-party support to enable long-term strategic planning, establishing and overseeing a credible project pipeline, embedding best practice with tools like the Construction Playbook, and improving communication with the public so people are aware of the benefits of infrastructure.

The ICE鈥檚 director of policy Sam Gould said: 鈥淎head of the 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy, NISTA has a short window to set out how it is going to approach these tasks. The right expertise to plan and successfully deliver infrastructure existed in the NIC and the IPA, now the focus needs to be on getting the job done.鈥�

The 10-year Infrastructure Strategy is expected to be published within the next two months alongside the Spending Review in June. 

Analysis from the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) of 20,000 projects has found those with the best planning at the start of a project had 20% lower costs and were delivered up to 15% faster.