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Kent Coast Railway Line

Absolutely. I would be delighted to explain that to the hon. Gentleman. The economics are simple. If one does the detailed financial modelling, as we have done, but as I understand his party has not done, one can take the average fare available and set it as the average fare available for high-speed rail and therefore say that that is the fare one would introduce. That is exactly what we have done in detailed financial modelling, which has enabled me to make that claim. The debate is not about the success or otherwise of high-speed rail, but about the failure of the Government's franchising policy. I cannot help but agree with my hon. Friend the Member for North Thanet when he said that, while some of the people of Ashford and some parts of Kent might have gained as a result of the new services into St. Pancras, those in other parts are clearly losing out. The new timetable was drawn up to accommodate the high-speed services and has undoubtedly resulted in winners and losers. I am sure that the Minister will remember his comments in the Adjournment debate on 6 January, when he more or less dismissed the concerns of others. He stated that""between 20 and 50 per cent. of the people…board and alight the trains at Ashford."—[Official Report, 6 January 2010; Vol. 503, c. 79WH.]" He dismissed the concerns of the 50 to 80 per cent. of people who do not board or alight at Ashford. The winners and losers aspect was freely admitted to me by Southeastern, as it was to my hon. Friend. When the timetable was in draft form last summer, I wrote to the management of Southeastern and was told:""I'm afraid that no timetable will please every passenger."" That may be true, but to disadvantage so many passengers clearly cannot be right. It is clear that for those travelling to St. Pancras, the new high-speed services will greatly enhance the journey, but if one is accustomed to using the classic network, if one lives in other parts of Kent, or if one still needs to get to Cannon Street, Victoria or London Bridge, the new timetable, as my hon. Friends have pointed out so well, makes the commute worse. There are fewer trains on the classic lines in order to free up paths for the high-speed trains. What is more, fares across the whole network have risen to fund the cost of the high-speed link.