Transport Insights

A response from the Department for Transport on the question of whether it is really going to privatise a major public asset as part of its plan for the Lower Thames Crossing (LTC) suggests that the penny has dropped that it is incompatible with Andy Burnham’s promise to give people more “ownership and control”.

Officials have suddenly slipped the phrase “at this stage” into what otherwise appears to be a doubling down on the choice of the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model, under which ownership and operations of the Dartford Crossings would transfer to a new regulated private sector entity.

When you look at the scheme’s Accounting Officer Assessment, the choice of the RAB model looks pretty decisive:

The project is affordable on the basis of the regulated asset base (RAB) model

The decision that the LTC will be taken forward on the basis of the RAB model

The RAB model is the only current option that is judged to sufficiently meet the government’s strategic objective

The decision to … take forward the RAB model as the government’s preferred financing model

As for as I can see, the DfT has not previously used “at this stage” when describing the financing model for the £10bn+ project.

It has now:

The Government’s preferred financing option for the Lower Thames Crossing at this stage is the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model as this is the best way of reducing the cost burden of the project to taxpayers.

And

Under the RAB model, ownership and operations of the Dartford Crossing would transfer to a new regulated private sector entity, which would be responsible for operating and maintaining both the Dartford Crossing and the Lower Thames Crossing, ensuring a consistent and reliable service.

Even the “would” is different from the AOA, which states:

Legislation will be required to implement the RAB model

In Whitehall language, the sudden appearance of a qualifier where none existed before is a signal that something in the underlying position has become uncertain, contested, or politically sensitive.

Given that Burnham said only last week:

The government I lead will be relentless in giving people and places what they were promised 10 years ago, ownership and control.

That makes uncertain, contested, or politically sensitive bang on the money.