Clause 47
Crossrail Bill
12:00 pm
Tom Harris (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Transport; Glasgow South, Labour)
Clause 47 empowers the Secretary of State to specify by order one or more nominated undertakers, for the purposes of the Bill. The clause requires the Secretary of State, before making such a nomination order, to consult the Mayor of London—who will, I am sure, be Ken Livingstone. It also allows the Secretary of State, by agreement with the Mayor of London and whoever it is proposed to name in the nomination order, to fetter his discretion as to the exercise of the power granted in subsection (1). That power is necessary to enable the Secretary of State to make contractual arrangements prior to the nomination of a person or body as the nominated undertaker.
The amendment would require the Secretary of State to consult leaders and chief executives of local authorities along the route before making a nomination order and before entering into agreements with the proposed nominated undertaker. The crucial part of my opposition to the amendment is that clause 47 requires the Secretary of State to consult the Mayor before taking either of the actions specified. As the hon. Member for Wimbledon knows, the Mayor is co-sponsor of Crossrail; that is why he is given the relevant power. It is intended that the Mayor will be responsible for delivering the project through Cross London Rail Links Ltd. I expect to say more about how it is intended to manage the project when the relevant amendments are considered.
For the purpose of the current debate the simple point is that it is right that the Mayor, as co-sponsor of Crossrail, should be consulted when the Secretary of State contemplates making a nomination order or entering into an agreement with any nominated undertaker. The chief executives to whom the amendment refers are not co-sponsors of Crossrail, and it would not be appropriate for there to be an obligation to consult local authorities along the route about the matters before us. There will be a good deal of discussion and consultation with key stakeholders, such as local authorities, because they will have a key role to play in the detailed delivery of the project, but it does not seem appropriate at this stage to consult them about the identity of a nominated undertaker or the terms under which a nominated undertaker will be commissioned to carry out the work. Such matters are properly for the project’s sponsors, so I trust that the hon. Gentleman will withdraw the amendment.