Orders of the Day — Channel Tunnel Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 5 Rhagfyr 1973.

Danfonwch hysbysiad imi am ddadleuon fel hyn

As the House will be aware, the present arrangements can be abandoned at any time by any party. It is possible that the companies might abandon, either deliberately, or through a failure to meet their obligations, in circumstances in which the two Governments wished to continue, either on their own or with new private partners. If the Bill were tied directly to the present arrangements, work would have to come to a dead stop while new arrangements were made and new powers sought. This would greatly increase the cost and difficulty of completing the tunnel. So Clauses 33 and 34 provide a mechanism whereby the project could be kept going in such circumstances, provided an order were laid before the House, and provided that, if the Secretary of State were continuing construction with public money, a further order were laid every six months, unless or until further substantive powers were obtained. These provisions are a safety net which, like all safety nets, we hope and believe will not be needed, but which would be invaluable if it were needed.