Government Slammed for Supertram Smoke and Mirrors (Leeds Liberal Democrats)

Leeds Liberal Democrats <info@leedslibdems.org.uk>

Government Slammed for Supertram Smoke and Mirrors

November 4, 2005 2:38 PM

Councillor Ryk Downes (Lib Dem, Otley and Yeadon) has heaped criticism on the government for misleading statements on the cost of the Supertram scheme.

Yesterday's statement from the Department for Transport announcing that the government was axing the scheme, accuses Supertram's promoters of providing "seriously misleading" figures and claims that the final scheme will cost almost twice as much as the original 2001 proposals.

However, the reason for this is a change in the government's preferred method for funding the scheme. This method involves the government borrowing a greater proportion of the money for the Supertram project which results in much greater cash costs over the long run for the government, in the same way that repayments on a mortgage amount to far more than the original sum borrowed. This has nothing to do with the upfront cost of the scheme itself.

Cllr Downes, chair of the Supertram working party on the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Authority, condemned the government for attempting to deflect the blame for its own decisions on Supertram funding.

Cllr Downes said:

"It is breathtakingly cynical for the government to accuse us of providing misleading figures when the reason for the disparity between their estimate and ours is a change to the government's preferred method of funding the scheme.

"This has got nothing to do with the actual cost of building Supertram and the government's share of this is exactly what it was in the original proposal.

"Even with the government's revised estimates, the subsidy per passenger would only be £1.60. This is roughly half the current subsidy for every local rail passenger (around £3). By anyone's reckoning this still represents a good value solution to the traffic problems of Leeds.

"It is disgraceful that the government is seeking to blame Leeds for changes to its own accounting methods. This fiddling with the figures is simply a way for the government to deny the truth of the matter, which is that they are reneging on their agreement to fund Supertram."

The views in this Press Release are those of the Liberal Democrat Council Group, and not necessarily those of Leeds City Council, its Officers or of the Liberal Democrat Party