Lord INGLEWOODMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the cost of the A66 road improvements between Chapel Brow and Barons Cross, as compared with the estimate given at the public inquiry in Penrith in February/March 1972.
§ Baroness STEDMANMy Lords, at the 1972 public inquiry, the estimate given of the comprehensive improvement of the A66 trunk road between Chapel Brow and Barons Cross was £11.6 million, which equates to approximately £26 million at present-day costs. The final cost of the scheme is expected to be £31.8 million. The differences in cost, although largely accounted for by inflation, are also partly due to the identification of precise requirements arising out of the detailed design as well as to unexpected difficulties encountered during the actual construction of the road.