HL Deb 24 June 1988 vol 498 cc1049-50

11.12 a.m.

Lord Graham of Edmonton asked Her Majesty's Government:

What arrangements will be made for traffic control and effective parking in connection with the new Battersea amusement park complex.

Lord Hesketh

My Lords, these are matters for the London Borough of Wandsworth as the relevant planning and highway authority.

Lord Graham of Edmonton

My Lords, does the Minister accept that the Battersea project is an imaginative enterprise that should command support from all quarters? Bearing in mind that it is the intention to attract 4 million visitors and to provide work for 4,500 people, does the Minister not agree that some special treatment is required? Would the Minister care to tell the House, bearing in mind the damage to the environment that already affects residents and the volume of traffic in London, what special criteria he has in mind to guide Wandsworth in dealing with this exceptional problem?

Lord Hesketh

My Lords, on the assumption that the Department of Transport did not have any objections, clearly it is felt that the borough of Wandsworth is entirely competent to make decisions with regard to this question.

Lord Underhill

My Lords, does the Minister appreciate that his last reply is rather surprising? For an ambitious project of this kind, which I think we all welcome, surely some thought must have been given to a traffic management scheme in view of the problems that exist at the moment in respect of both residential parking and congested routes? Should not the traffic management unit—now controlled, I was told the other day, by the Corporation of London—be concerned in this matter? The problems go far beyond Wandsworth. Can the Minister assure the House that if consideration has not already been given to that aspect, it will be?

Lord Hesketh

My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Underhill, is absolutely right. Parking is a most important part of the project. Wandsworth had to be satisfied about that case. I should also remind the House that there is a proposed railway link with Victoria Station which, it is hoped, will carry as many as half of the visitors to the new complex when completed.

Lord Auckland

My Lords, having visited the site earlier this week, may I ask my noble friend the Minister whether he is aware of the enormous benefits to tourism that will arise from the project? Do the Government not have a responsibility in view of the enormous amount of traffic which will visit the complex at weekends and particularly at bank holidays? Is my noble friend sure that Wandsworth can bear the brunt? If not, will be reconsider what he has said?

Lord Hesketh

My Lords, my noble friend Lord Auckland makes a very good point. Of course, he is quite right to say that much of the extra traffic will occur at weekends when there is far less traffic in the centre of London.

Lord Graham of Edmonton

My Lords, does the Minister not agree that Wandsworth is not an island and that it is affected by wider considerations, not least those which have been mentioned by the noble Lord on the Opposition Front Bench? Does the Minister recognise that this question is benign and not malignant? We are genuinely seeking from the Minister a recognition that this is an exceptional development which calls for exceptional powers? What can Wandsworth expect from the Minister in the national interest?

Lord Hesketh

My Lords, I fully appreciate the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Graham. The Secretary of State has a direct interest in this matter because he is responsible for Queenstown Road and Nine Elms Lane. If he or the Department of Transport felt that there was a problem, they would obviously make that clear.

Lord Campbell of Alloway

My Lords, is it not appropriate for the Minister pretty soon to call in —I think that is the term —the parking arrangements; otherwise, it may be too late and serious dislocation could arise?

Lord Hesketh

My Lords, with regard to planning, the Secretary of State for the Environment did not call in the application because he was satisfied that the London Borough of Wandsworth was competent to decide the case.