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Light Rail

My constituency of Gosport is based on a peninsula, and the neighbouring town of Fareham is rapidly developing. The link between Gosport and Portsmouth is across a narrow 4,600 yd channel. The whole area is regarded as being ideally suitable for a light rail transit system, because road access is difficult. For decades some have thought that there could be a tunnel under the harbour at Portsmouth and some form of special transport system. Such thinking was encouraged in 1997, when the present Government came to power, and there was much talk of integrated transport systems. Hampshire county council, Portsmouth city council, and Gosport and Fareham borough councils were encouraged to spend many millions of pounds of council tax payers' money investigating the possibility of a light rapid transit system. Eventually the scheme was proposed, and it was indeed expensive. However, it was thought that it would comply with Government requirements, because the Government were talking so much about environmental issues being taken into account in cost analysis. Therefore, the local authorities felt justified in continuing. There was a public inquiry in Portsmouth, at which I made the first speech. I stressed that while there was the short-term disadvantage that roadworks in the area would cause congestion, the longer-term impact would be considerable, and future generations would have the benefit of this long-sighted planning, which the Government were encouraging and which the local authorities were undertaking. Eventually, the scheme was given approval and was put through to Government. There was a long delay, at the end of which the Government rejected the scheme as too expensive. The local authorities went back to the drawing board and cut the scheme back to make it affordable. It went back to the Government for approval a long time ago. We were hoping for approval at the beginning of this year, and then we were pressing for it in July. I have tabled many parliamentary questions and written many letters to the Minister pleading for an answer, because all the time the local authorities are incurring expense. There have been months of delay. I tabled a question on Monday for priority answer next Wednesday—and now we have the announcement that the Government will not back the south Hampshire scheme. That will be greeted with great disappointment and anger in south Hampshire. Hampshire county council—all credit to it—understands the problems of south Hampshire. The residents of north Hampshire have supported those in south Hampshire in putting forward this imaginative scheme, and the whole county has put a large number of eggs in the basket of light rapid transit in south Hampshire. As a result, all local road schemes, such as the Stubbington bypass and the improvements to the A32, have effectively been put on hold. Everything has been hanging on the decision on the light rapid transit system, and now we get this slap in the face. I find it deeply disappointing that the Government have encouraged local authorities to spend so much money on such schemes. I find it equally disappointing that the Government failed to give the answer earlier, for I know not what reason. It would even have helped if they had been brave enough to give a negative decision earlier, rather than allowing the local authorities to continue to waste so much time and energy. Time and money have been lost. It is deeply and profoundly disappointing, and I can only ask the Minister whether he will take account of all those factors, and what special circumstances he will take account of to help south Hampshire come back to a new system of transport now that he has rejected our preferred option.