High Speed 2 Railway Line
Transport
John Stevenson (Carlisle, Conservative)
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements are in place to ensure that no fraudulent claims are made in respect of the High Speed 2 extreme hardship fund.
Simon Burns (Chelmsford, Conservative)
All applications to the Exceptional Hardship Scheme are judged against five published criteria and applicants must provide detailed evidence to support their case. This evidence is first assessed by a majority independent panel who see all the information and evidence submitted by applicants before making a recommendation to the Department for Transport. The final decision on the outcome of applications is ordinarily made by a senior civil servant in the Department for Transport on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport. This ensures that funding is targeted appropriately.