Mr Brown Must Step in to Save the Tube ; the Disastrous Performance of Metronet, the Biggest Tube Contractor, Is the Result of Deeply Flawed Contracts. These Must Now Be Unravelled by the New Pm

Summary

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THE FORMER Cabinet Secretary Andrew Turnbull recently noted the "Macavity quality" of Gordon Brown: the Chancellor so often manages to vanish from the scene when pet schemes of his go wrong. But after he reaches 10 Downing Street, that may become more difficult. And almost unnoticed outside London, one such scheme is now approaching crisis point, nicely timed for his assumption of power: the Tube Public-Private Partnership and the slow-motion implosion of Metronet.

All the evidence suggests that the Metronet consortium, which is responsible for maintaining and refurbishing nine out of the 12 Underground lines, is in serious trouble. The "Arbiter", Chris Bolt, an independent officer appointed to oversee the PPP, has produced clear and shocking reports suggesting Metronet is way behind on its work programme.

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Extract

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Mr Brown Must Step in to Save the Tube ; the Disastrous Performance of Metronet, the Biggest Tube Contractor, Is the Result of Deeply Flawed Contracts. These Must Now Be Unravelled by the New Pm

Massive disruption to commuters' journeys has become routine. Meanwhile, costs for any work actually completed have spiralled out of control, creating a black hole in Metronet's finances of up to Pounds 1.5 billion. The likelihood is that it will attempt to hand the bill for this to taxpayers...

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