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Crossrail Bill

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising an important issue. The Bill is designed to enable Crossrail to be constructed and, to do so, it is necessary to take powers not only to acquire land but, crucially, to allow the Crossrail services to run. Now that the Government have strategic control of the direction of the railways as a result of the Railways Act 2005, we clearly have an interest in ensuring that we have a railway network that not only serves London and its commuters, but is part of the national network. We are putting into London a new stretch of railway, while inevitably using existing railway lines, so it is necessary to take powers in the Bill to ensure that the Crossrail services can run. However, I make it clear to the House that, although the Crossrail services are important, it is equally important that we maintain the other services that run into London, such as the lines that come up from the west of England and south Wales and, at the eastern end of the tunnel, the trains that run on the Great Eastern and East Anglia network generally. As I said, the Bill will give us the power to devolve the track itself to Network Rail or to the Mayor of London, but I am absolutely clear that we cannot have a railway where one bit operates to the great disadvantage of the other bit. Crossrail will not just carry the sort of metro services that run in the inner part of London, but link the City of London with areas to the west, using existing services, as well as Crossrail services to some extent. We want the Heathrow Express to continue, as does BAA, which operates it. Crossrail must also tie into the largely commuter services that come in from East Anglia, as well as not just cross-channel but Kent services. I want to make it abundantly clear that, once Crossrail is complete, we must regard the railway as precisely what it is: part of the national network, albeit one that clearly serves large parts of London in particular. The reason why I need those powers is to ensure that we can make Crossrail happen, but, as it develops, we want to ensure that we can have a proper, integrated railway network, which is a concern that a number—