HC Deb 11 February 2004 vol 417 cc1452-3W
Mr. Nigel Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will estimate real terms cost inflation for road improvement projects for each year since 1997. [153782]

Mr. Jamieson

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) monitors prices for new road construction and publishes indices. The DTI's Road Construction Tender Price Index (RCTPI and also known as the ROA DCON Index) is based on priced rates contained in accepted tenders for road construction, motorway widening and major maintenance schemes costing over £0.25 million obtained from the Highways Agency and local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales. The indices are published every quarter and the first two columns of the table are abstracted from the latest available ROADCON Index figures (December 2003). The third column has been calculated for this answer.

ROADCON Index Year on year "inflation rate "

(in ROADCON Index terms)

since 1997
1997 100 —
1998 99 -1.0
1999 100 +1.0
2000 114 +14.0
2001 117 +2.6
2002 121 +3.4
2003 1122 +0.8
1The figure for the year 2003 is an interim figure as (i) the year is not yet complete (the last quarter is January to March 2004), and (ii) the indices for the last two published quarters are provisional and subject to adjustment (when delayed data are received by DTI).