Chancellor set to speed up Lower Thames Crossing court challenges to "get spades in the ground"
£10bn Lower Thames Crossing to see “spades in the ground” if government speeds up court challenges
The £10bn Lower Thames Crossing connecting Gravesend to Tilbury is being delayed due to court challenges, something the government say it is working to speed up.
On 12 October, it was reported the LTC has been taken away from National Highways and handed to the Department for Transport (DfT).
Campaigners have warned the move could lead to overspending and ministers approving developments behind closed doors that would harm the environment.
Now in the hands of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves says if the government can speed up judicial challenges, we could see "spades in the ground" sooner.
The Chancellor told the Local Democracy Reporting Service she intends to “back the builders not the blockers” and wants to cut the time it takes to deal with judicial reviews on major projects.
Mrs Reeves also wants judges with planning expertise to preside over legal cases to avoid lengthy delays in coming to decisions.
Speaking at the Dartford Crossing on Monday 13 October, the Chancellor said:
“We are reducing the time judicial reviews take by six months to make it earlier to get projects started and get spades in the ground."
"Pinning parties down to specific court dates and timings will speed the process up", said Mrs Reeves.
She added: “As you know, earlier in the year we reduced the number of times that national, significantly important projects can be judicially reviewed, so this is building on changes that have already been announced.
The Lower Thames Crossing is the UK’s largest planned infrastructure project, hoping to cut journey times and ease pressures on the Dartford crossings.
Site surveys for the LTC, running under the River Thames, have already begun and completion is set for 2034.
The Executive Director of the Lower Thames Crossing project, Matt Palmer, said the pace at which LTC can proceed will depend on the government.
“Minister decide on the scope and financing of a project,” he said at the Dartford Crossing on Monday.
The event was attended by Gravesham MP, Dr Lauren Sullivan, who hopes to secure a cut of the toll charges on the LTC for the people of her constituency.
LTC, which is part of National Highways, will know with six to nine months the scale at which the plans will proceed.