Channel Tunnel Rail Link (Supplementary Provisions) Bill

That seems quite a reasonable position to adopt. I refer my hon. Friend to my earlier answer, as I understand that the procurement process is under way for a supplier and there is a possible contractor to provide the link that he so craves, but I cannot guarantee whether there is going to be a travolator, a moving pavement or whatever. The hon. Member for Richmond Park (Susan Kramer) talked about passenger growth predictions, which goes to the hub of the issue that arose in 1998 when the previous financial arrangements for building the channel tunnel rail link collapsed. Inevitably, predictions of passenger growth were too optimistic. In 1994, when passenger services first began, it was estimated that 21 million people would be using Eurostar by 2010. That prediction has had to be reviewed and it is now expected that 10 million people will use Eurostar services by that date. That shortfall led to a lack of confidence in the economic underpinning of the deal that was put together in 1996. I challenged what the hon. Lady said about the risk to growth resulting from the move to St. Pancras. I do not think she can have it both ways. In the absence of an immediate start to work on high-speed links to the north, the location of St. Pancras as a terminal for Eurostar services will be of great benefit not only to Londoners but, crucially, to people living north of London. Even people in my constituency—and certainly those living in the north of England—find it easier to travel to Euston and King's Cross and then on to St. Pancras than to arrive at either of those stations and then take the underground or a cab down to Waterloo International. I entirely agree with what the hon. Lady said about the importance of freight. Of course it is in everyone's interest for us to manage a major shift from road to rail. As the hon. Lady will know, in the high-level output specification announced in July we have committed £200 million to developing a strategic freight network, and various grants have already been made in the past few weeks to encourage gauge changes on existing freight lines. The hon. Lady asked whether the proceeds of any future sale could be put towards the development of a high-speed network. She predicted a substantial bonus for the Treasury from the sale of LCR or its component parts. She should bear in mind that the Government gave LCR a £3 billion grant during construction, and has already assumed £6.1 million of debt. However significant the windfall from the sale of LCR may be, I am not sure how much will be left over for any such project. My hon. Friend the Member for Carlisle (Mr. Martlew) —who is a doughty promoter of high-speed lines on the basis that all of them will stop at Carlisle—gave an eloquent and enthusiastic account of his reasons for supporting high-speed links. He spoke of the evidence that Sir Rod Eddington gave to the Transport Committee. He was, of course, right to clarify what Sir Rod said about high-speed lines. He did not rule them out; although I think he did rule out maglev as a technology. Maglev is slightly different from high-speed lines. I do not demur from Sir Rod's view that high-speed lines may well have a role to play, but I believe that its role would involve meeting increased capacity demands rather than the environment or connectivity. The hon. Member for Ashford (Damian Green) understandably raised, again, the unfairness with which he feels his constituency has been treated by Eurostar. I echo what was said by my hon. Friend the Member for South Thanet (Dr. Ladyman). Whether he admits it or not, the hon. Gentleman is completely at odds with his colleagues on the Front Bench, who constantly tell the Government every month during Transport questions that Ministers should not be micro-managing the railway. We should not be writing timetables. I agree with that, and we do not do it: that is why we do not specify the timetable for Eurostar. The hon. Gentleman should be aware that even with the revised service at Ashford, 33 per cent. more Eurostar services stop in Kent as a result of the opening of Ebbsfleet. He also asked about the role of the Office of Rail Regulation, which I hope I have now clarified.