FUTURE FUNDING OF CROSSRAIL

That this House notes with alarm reports that the Secretary of State for Transport has refused to grant Transport for London's request to raise its debt ceilings in order to directly purchase Crossrail rolling stock; further notes that the alternative procurement model for the 1 billion Crossrail project is based upon the bundling-train manufacture and financing together, which is the same model that fatally stacked the odds against Bombardier for Thameslink rolling stock contract; observes that this was at the expense of 12,000 jobs in the UK; further notes the Treasury Select Committee's estimate that this funding model increases the cost to the taxpayer of procurement by 70 per cent.; believes that this distorts the procurement process in favour of larger companies that can borrow higher amounts of private capital; recognises the mortal threat to the UK rail manufacturing industry from the Crossrail contract being awarded to a bidder that would build those trains overseas; and calls on the Government to allow the cheaper public sector bid to be submitted as part of the invitation to tender for the Crossrail project.