Clause 11
Crossrail Bill
1:30 pm
Tom Harris (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Transport; Glasgow South, Labour)
I begin by clarifying for the elimination of all doubt that I agree with the hon. Gentleman and also expect the construction of Crossrail to be well under way in 10 years time. I do not want the Committee to be in any doubt about the Government’s intention in that regard. Last month, the Prime Minister made an announcement about Crossrail and said that we expect major works to start in 2010 and for the first services to be running in 2017. The Government and the Mayor, as joint sponsors of Crossrail, are confident that the outlined programme for construction is realistic. On that basis, we expect all scheduled works to have begun within the 10-year period provided for in subsection (1).
This is a massive project, however, and its scale and complexity are such that we believe it is prudent for Parliament to allow the flexibility that subsections (2) and (3) provide, so that the project can be completed whatever perturbations may occur—I guess it is the word “perturbations” for which the hon. Gentleman wants a definition. We cannot predict why delays might occur, but I am sure that hon. Members will join me in hoping that they do not happen.
Crossrail, as with any large project, is susceptible to external factors that might affect the programme. We believe that the flexibility to extend the period of deemed planning permission is appropriate, and I assure the Committee that the ability to extend the period of deemed planning permission that the Bill grants is well precedented. I shall offer a prize to the first Member who can tell me where that precedent emerges—the 1996 Act. It should be remembered that during the construction of the channel tunnel rail link, an extension of the 10-year planning permission was not required and we do not expect it to be required on this occasion.