•Mayor announces new Growth Commission to help realise Crossrail 2’s full potential to boost economic growth in London and across the UK •More than 50 top business leaders back the economic case for Crossrail 2 as vital to securing hundreds of thousands of new homes and jobs •Sir Merrick Cockell announced as the Chairman of the Growth Commission With London’s population set to top 10 million by 2030 some of the UK’s most senior business leaders today issued a powerful call to Government to support the Mayor’s economic case for building Crossrail 2, the proposed northeast south west rail link across London. The call to action came as the Mayor announced the creation of the Crossrail 2 Growth Commission, and the appointment of Sir Merrick Cockell as the Commission’s Chairman. In an open letter to the Times newspaper highlighting the importance of the new railway to the UK economy, business leaders called on the Government to use the current Comprehensive Spending Review to provide the development funding needed to start building Crossrail 2 early in the next decade. Leading business figures like Simon Collins, UK Chairman of KPMG, and Lord Mervyn Davies, Chairman of Chime Communications, believe Crossrail 2 is vital to the creation of hundreds of thousands of jobs and homes, and argue rapid progress of the new rail link needs to be harnessed now to support growth in London, and across the UK. The Mayor urged the Government to boost support for the scheme as he set out plans for the Crossrail 2 Growth Commission. The Commission will help maximise the benefit of the new railway by bringing together the London boroughs, county councils outside London and other key business and development stakeholders along the route to work together on how the railway can best support housing and job creation. Tens of thousands of homes could be built ahead of opening in anticipation of the improved connectivity, helping to meet the demands of a rapidly growing population. By 2030 it is expected that the population of London alone will have risen by 1.4 million people – from 8.6 million today to 10 million – rising to 11 million by 2050. Mayor of London, Boris Johnson MP, said: “Crossrail 2 will help realise London’s full economic potential, increasing the nation’s productivity and creating thousands of new jobs and homes. Major projects take time to plan and prepare and with Crossrail 1 nearing completion, we must move quickly to the next transformational growth project which could see even more benefits delivered. Crossrail 2 will support up to 200,000 more homes and jobs, adding billions of pounds to the national economy and ensuing a prosperous future for the whole country.” The call came as the Mayor gave a speech at the European HQ of business specialists Bloomberg, setting out how Crossrail 2 can be a transformational infrastructure project that will maximise the country’s economic growth. Crossrail 2 will enable and accelerate the development of much needed new housing, helping regenerate some of the UK’s most deprived areas including the Upper Lea Valley. The capacity of the rail network is already under pressure, particularly the lines into Waterloo, and the rail network there will soon be full. Without investment in Crossrail 2, not only would growth be hindered but it would not address the severe capacity constraints that occur on the network that commuters suffer from today. The construction of Crossrail 2 will support the UK engineering, construction and manufacturing sectors with a supply chain stretching across the UK, potentially supporting around 60,000 full time jobs. This is in addition to the 18,000 who will be employed directly during the peak of construction and over 1,300 new jobs that will be created to operate Crossrail 2. Once operational, Crossrail 2 will allow more people to access jobs, supporting the creation of up to 200,000 new jobs, both locally and in London’s highly productive central area. A PWC study published in 2014 showed that at least half the cost of Crossrail 2 can be met by London. By linking homes and jobs Crossrail 2 could deliver net additional GVA benefits – the value of goods and services produced – totalling up to £100bn, generating tax revenues that are more than sufficient to fund central Government’s contribution. The revenues to the exchequer are forecast to include higher Stamp Duty receipts of at least £20bn – both the stamp duty paid on sale and resale the additional homes unlocked, and as a consequence of Crossrail 2’s impact on the values of existing homes along the line of the route. Lord Mervyn Davies, Chairman of Chime Communications said: “It is vital that we increase the country’s productivity and with London growing rapidly we cannot afford to delay this transformational project. By supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs and homes, Crossrail 2 will drive the UK economy forward - that’s why we are calling for rapid progress to ensure that that this essential new railway is ready for when we need it.” The establishment of the Commission at this early stage of the development of Crossrail 2 will ensure that plans for local development can be aligned with the route of the railway and that any changes to the project can be made without significant abortive costs. The Commission will report in Spring 2016. Sir Merrick Cockell, Chairman of the Crossrail 2 Growth Commission, said: “I am delighted to be appointed as the Chairman of the Crossrail 2 Growth Commission. This new railway is imperative to the future growth of the Capital and across the UK and the Growth Commission will play a key role in helping ensure local development plans along the route meet their full potential.” The new high frequency, high capacity rail line is designed to address capacity constraints as well as providing vital new connections across the Capital, supporting the UK's single largest employment area. The new rail line will create additional capacity, transporting up to 270,000 people into central London in the morning peak, and relieve congestion across the existing rail network by running services through a new tunnel under London. Michele Dix, TfL’s Managing Director for Crossrail 2, said: “Crossrail 2 is an essential piece of national infrastructure, which will relieve pinch points on national rail and Tube networks, unlocking jobs, homes and growth. The wider economic returns of Crossrail 2 will help secure London's economic potential and will generate tax revenues that will pay back the investment many times over." Chris Curtis, Head of Crossrail 2 at Network Rail, said: “The railways in London and the south east are already the busiest in the country, with many routes at or close to capacity, and growth continuing. As well as enabling economic growth in London and the south east, Crossrail 2 will help to relieve congestion and reduce overcrowding on busy routes into the capital from further afield.” A public consultation will begin in the autumn, providing more information on the scheme including locations for work sites and station entrances. ENDS Notes to editors ·Crossrail 2 would run underground through new 36km twin-bore tunnels between Wimbledon and Tottenham Hale and New Southgate, joining with the existing National Rail networks in Surrey and Hertfordshire. It will provide a number of interchanges with the Underground and National Rail network. · A video setting out the benefits of Crossrail 2 is available at http://youtu.be/8XOg_wPjqnI •Biography of Sir Merrick Cockell. Sir Merrick Cockell has been Deputy Chairman of London Pensions Fund Authority (LPFA) since April 2013, following his appointment to the Board in 2010. In January 2015, Sir Merrick was appointed Chairman of the UK Municipal Bonds Agency, the first of its kind in Great Britain. A councillor for over 29 years, Sir Merrick also served as Leader of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea from 2000 until 2013. He was a key architect in the formation of “Tri Borough”, a revolutionary new model of delivering integrated public services between the three London Boroughs of Kensington & Chelsea, Westminster and Hammersmith and Fulham. Sir Merrick Cockell was Chairman of the Local Government Association from 2011-2014. He successfully led the LGA through arguably the most difficult time for UK local government in a generation. From 2006-10, Sir Merrick chaired London Councils, the cross-party lobbying organisation which represents London’s 32 boroughs and the City of London. Sir Merrick is Chairman of Localis, an independent think-tank dedicated to issues related to local government and localism. He is also the Executive Chairman of Cratus Communications and a Senior Adviser to PA Consulting Group. •Full text of letter– Sir, It is vital that we increase the UK’s productivity. That’s why we support transport investment across the UK as well as in London, the engine of our economy. We welcome the Chancellor’s Long Term Economic Plan for London, and its commitment to provide essential investment for the modernisation of Tube, rail, bus and road networks. But with London set to grow rapidly in coming years, these improvements alone will not be enough. Now that Europe’s largest engineering project, Crossrail, is nearing completion, on time and to budget, we must rapidly move forward with Crossrail 2. It will unlock land for up to 200,000 new homes, and jobs to match, adding up to £7.9 billion per annum to London’s GVA and growing the national economy. We were encouraged by the Conservative manifesto commitment to push forward with Crossrail 2 and the Chancellor’s call to “get the idea off the page and into construction”. In the light of his recent Budget, we call on him to use the Comprehensive Spending Review to grow the UK economy and provide the development funding necessary to design Crossrail 2 so that trains can start running in 2030 to support new jobs, homes and a productive economy. Yours faithfully, Richard Boggis-Rolfe, Chairman, Odgers Berndtson Karen Boswell, Managing Director, Hitachi Rail Europe Rob Bould, Chief Executive, Bilfinger GVA Sir Win Bischoff Hugh Bullock, Chairman, Gerald Eve John Burns, CEO, Derwent Tom Cartledge, Global Director - Operations and Commercial, Benoy Pat Carvalho, Vice Principal, Harrow College Victor Chavez, CEO, Thales UK Vincent Clancy, CEO, Turner & Townsend Simon Collins, UK Chairman, KPMG Jason Cotterrell, Managing Director, Exterion Media Donna-Marie Cullen, Executive Director, Tottenham Hotspur FC Prof Paul Curran, Vice Chancellor, City University Lord Mervyn Davies, Chairman, Chime Communications Gavin Devine, CEO, MHP Communications Richard Dickinson, Chief Executive, New West End Company James Fennell, Managing Director, Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners Andy Forbes, Principal, College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London Julian Gatward, Managing Director, Taylor Woodrow Paul Hanafin, Director, Royal HaskoningDHV Andrew Harrison, Managing Director, London Stansted Airport Justin Hobday, Managing Director, Carmichael Fisher Rob Holden, Chairman, HS1 Ltd Stephen Hubbard, Chairman, CBRE Sir George Iacobescu CBE, Chairman & CEO, Canary Wharf Group Maxwell James, Chief Executive, Quintain Gerald Kaye, Development Director, Helical Bar George Kessler, Joint Deputy Chairman, Kesslers Ian Liddell, UK Head of Development, WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff Tass Mavrogordato, Chief Executive, Inmidtown BID John Morgan, Chief Executive, Morgan Sindall Group David Morley, Senior Partner, Allen & Overy Andrew Murphy, Retail Director, John Lewis Department Stores Steve Norris, Chairman, Soho Estates Chris Osborne, Co-Chairman, FTI Consulting Harold Paisner, Senior Partner Emeritus, Berwin Leighton Paisner David Partridge, Managing Partner, Argent Nicolas Petrovic, CEO, Eurostar Anthony Pidgley CBE, Chairman, Berkeley Group Simon Pitkeathley, CEO, Camden Town Unlimited BID Jonny Popper, Managing Director, London Communications Agency Sarah Porter, Chief Executive, Heart of London BID Mark Reynolds, Chief Executive, Mace Jamie Ritblat, Chairman and Chief Executive, Delancey Bob Rothenburg, Senior Partner, Blick Rothenburg James Rowntree Managing Director, Transportation (Europe), CH2M Hugh Seaborn, CEO, Cadogan Estate Peter Shaw, Global Board Director, Aedas Colin Stanbridge, CEO, London Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sue Terpilowski OBE, London Policy Chairman, Federation of Small Businesses Rob Tincknell, CEO, Battersea Power Station Development Company Baroness Jo Valentine, CEO, London First Daniel Van Gelder, Chairman, Westminster Property Association Peter Vernon, Chief Executive, Grosvenor Matthew Weiner, Chief Executive, Development Securities Tom Welton, Director, Shaftesbury Stewart Wingate, CEO, Gatwick Airport
Created on
17 July 2015