Burnham’s Prospective Economic Adviser Pushes for Billions in New Infrastructure Borrowing

Jim O’Neill, former Goldman Sachs chief economist, has urged the new government to raise “billions of pounds” in additional borrowing for major infrastructure projects. He proposes an independent entity, modelled on the OBR, to oversee the borrowing, recommending the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (Nista) become a separate, transparent body that publishes growth-multiplier estimates for each project.

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Andy Burnham, poised to succeed Keir Starmer as prime minister, has assembled a team including O’Neill, former Bank of England economist Andy Haldane and former OBR chief Richard Hughes. Burnham pledges to respect fiscal rules and Labour’s manifesto promise not to raise income tax, VAT or national insurance. Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s reforms allow borrowing to be offset by asset values, a mechanism O’Neill says aligns with his proposal.

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O’Neill argues that an independent infrastructure body would provide transparent calculations of each project’s growth impact, reassuring bond markets while staying within the fiscal framework. He stresses that asset-based offsets can balance the additional debt. Burnham, in public remarks, reaffirms his commitment to fiscal discipline and to expanding northern transport initiatives, including a new underground station at Manchester Piccadilly, without altering tax rates.

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Analysts warn that additional borrowing could increase bond-market volatility if investors doubt the transparency of project assessments. O’Neill acknowledges these jitters but contends that an OBR-style independent body would mitigate investor anxiety by publishing clear multiplier estimates.

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No formal decision on expanding borrowing or restructuring Nista has been announced. The precise amount of borrowing remains unspecified, and O’Neill’s prospective role—whether as chief economic adviser, Treasury minister or devolution adviser—has not been confirmed.

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• “We need Nista as a separate, much more transparent entity.” — Jim O’Neill, Economist

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• “The public then gets a clearer sense, as do financial markets, as to what the multiplier effects [on growth] would be.” — Jim O’Neill, Economist

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• “One thing I think Andy might explore is a much more publicly transparent entity – a sort of infrastructure version of the OBR – in which the whole country can see regularly, transparently which big infrastructure projects are going to make a difference and which ones won’t.” — Jim O’Neill, Economist

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• “[That would] get away from this very personal, subjective view: I love HS2, I hate HS2, and so on.” — Jim O’Neill, Economist

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Burnham is slated to deliver a speech outlining his programme, expected to cover devolution and infrastructure investment. If O’Neill joins the cabinet, the government may draft legislation to spin off Nista as an independent authority and establish a transparent reporting framework. Bond-market reactions and parliamentary scrutiny will shape the final borrowing plan.

The Guardian