§ Sir A. Bossomasked the Paymaster-General whether he will make a statement on the progress to date of the scheme to connect this country with the continental electric grid; what this will cost; what benefit will accrue to Great Britain; and how much agricultural land will be required to make this fully efficient.
§ Sir I. HorobinOn the first part of the Question, I cannot add anything to the reply given to the hon. Member for Cleveland (Mr. Palmer) on 10th November, 1958. The total cost of the scheme, between the points of connection to the systems of England and France, is about £4 million, and this will be shared equally between the Central Electricity Generating Board and Electricite de France. The British contribution will be more than off-set by a reduction in the amount of new generating plant otherwise required, the net saving being of the order of £200,000 per annum.
The amount of agricultural land required depends on the site of the substation at the English end of the cable and on the route of the transmission line connecting this sub-station with the grid. These matters have been the subject of public inquiries and I do not think I should comment on them before my right hon. Friend, the Minister of Housing and Local Government and the Minister for Welsh Affairs and my noble Friend, the Minister of Power, have reached decisions.
§ Sir A. Bossomasked the Paymaster-General to what extent the question of a connection with the continental electric grid has been discussed with local authorities of Kent; and how far the local authorities indicated satisfaction.
§ Sir I. HorobinThe local authorities of Kent were not consulted about the principle of a connection between the British and Continental grid systems or about the route chosen for the underwater cable which was dictated by technical and economic considerations. The siting of the works required on this side98W of the Channel, namely a sub-station and certain overhead transmission lines has, however, been the subject of two public inquiries at which the views of the Kent County Council, and of a number of borough, rural district and parish councils were fully deployed.
The reports of the Inspectors who held these inquiries are now before my right hon. Friend the Minister of Housing and Local Government and the Minister for Welsh Affairs, and my noble Friend the Minister of Power, who are considering whether or not to give consent to the construction of the proposed works. In these circumstances I would prefer not to attempt a summary of these views which could be regarded as misleading, but I would assure my hon. Friend that they will be fully taken into account by the two Ministers in arriving at their decision.