Dartford River Crossing Tolls

With due respect, the hon. Gentleman and, unfortunately, others seem to assume that the road is used by local people only, but it is not. In the first few paragraphs that I had a chance to deliver, I said that it is part of the strategic road network. The hon. Gentleman is well aware that with the M25 on either side, it is part of a critical route. It is not just the people of Kent and Essex who pay for the crossing. I suspect that most of the people who use the crossing day in and day out would not want the additional delays that undoubtedly would follow if there were a free-for-all. Safety in the tunnel would also be impaired, because another matter that hon. and right hon. Members will be well aware of— [Interruption.] It would be a free-for-all, given the substantial tankers that need to be escorted through the tunnel. That is another management issue that has to be considered for the safety of all drivers and motorists going through the tunnel. Let me remind Members that the arrangements that were introduced in the Transport Act 2000 and discussed by Parliament gave powers to introduce a charge on the tunnel and the crossing at Dartford. The Act gave us that ability, and it said clearly that any surplus revenues after the costs had been met would go into transport schemes. I accept that transport schemes have benefited on both sides of the river, as have those in others places as well, but that is part of the £2 billion that is going in every year to local transport and regional funding allocations. Kent and Essex have certainly benefited directly.