Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish an independent review of tunnel costings relating to High Speed 2 (HS2) and the Colne Valley viaduct that was provided by the promoter to the House of Lords HS2 Select Committee; and what the name of the organisations and qualifications of those conducting that independent review were.

The independent review of the HS2 Ltd tunnel costings relating to HS2 Colne Valley viaduct, which was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Transport, was conducted by the Department for Transport’s lead non-executive director, Ed Smith CBE, FCA, CPFA, Hon DUniv, Hon LLDs.

A copy of the independent review report, which is entitled ‘Independent Review of HS2 Ltd Cost Estimates contained in the Hillingdon Working Group Report’, has been placed in the libraries of both Houses.