HC Deb 12 December 2001 vol 376 c878W
Mr. Gordon Prentice

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the Channel Tunnel Rail Link is due to be(a) completed and (b) operational. [22287]

Mr. Jamieson

Section 1 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), which runs from the Channel Tunnel to Fawkham Junction in Kent, is expected to be completed and operational in 2003. Section 2, from Ebbsfleet in Kent to St. Pancras in London, is expected to be completed and operational in 2007.

Mr. Syms

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the total costs up to 1 December associated with the negotiations for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link are. [22250]

Mr. Jamieson

The Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions employs a number of consultants who advise on engineering, financial, legal and other issues related to the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL). Their work has recently included the negotiations for finalising section 2 of the CTRL. and negotiations with Railtrack relating to their purchase of section 1. The total annual budget for CTRL advisers is around £7 million.