{"longTitle":"A Bill to make provision amending, and supplementary to, the Channel Tunnel Rail Link Act 1996","summary":"<p>The aim of the Bill is to clarify the legislation and regulations on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. This comes ahead of a restructuring of London &amp; Continental Railways, who won the bid to construct the Channel Tunnel Rail Link in February 1996.</p><p>In January 1998, the then Deputy Prime Minister announced that London &amp; Continental Railways had failed to find the necessary money for the project. On 3 June he announced its rescue: a public private partnership was set up and a new management team put in place.</p><p>Clause 1 of this Bill is of primary importance as it confirms that the Secretary of State is empowered to fund the Channel Tunnel Rail Link and the trains that run on it. </p><p><br><strong>Key areas</strong></p><ul><li>Amends the railway track access agreements set out in the original Channel Tunnel Rail Link Act 1996</li><li>Repeals certain duties of the Office of Rail Regulation</li><li>Allows the Office of Rail Regulation to charge a fee for carrying out its regulatory functions in relation to Channel Tunnel </li><li>Amends the definition of the agreement to develop the Channel Tunnel Rail Link in the 1996 Act to include the word 'operation'.  <br></li></ul>","sponsors":[{"member":{"memberId":439,"name":"Ruth Kelly","party":"Labour","partyColour":"d50000","house":"Commons","memberPhoto":"https://members-api.parliament.uk/api/Members/439/Thumbnail","memberPage":"https://members.parliament.uk/member/439/contact","memberFrom":"Bolton West"},"organisation":{"name":"Department for Transport","url":"https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-transport"},"sortOrder":1},{"member":{"memberId":3504,"name":"Lord Bassam of Brighton","party":"Labour","partyColour":"d50000","house":"Lords","memberPhoto":"https://members-api.parliament.uk/api/Members/3504/Thumbnail","memberPage":"https://members.parliament.uk/member/3504/contact","memberFrom":"Life peer"},"organisation":{"name":"Department for Transport","url":"https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-transport"},"sortOrder":2}],"promoters":[],"petitioningPeriod":null,"petitionInformation":null,"agent":null,"billId":189,"shortTitle":"Channel Tunnel Rail Link (Supplementary Provisions) Act 2008","formerShortTitle":null,"currentHouse":"Unassigned","originatingHouse":"Commons","lastUpdate":"2009-02-23T11:49:46","billWithdrawn":null,"isDefeated":false,"billTypeId":1,"introducedSessionId":21,"includedSessionIds":[21],"isAct":true,"currentStage":{"id":1614,"stageId":11,"sessionId":21,"description":"Royal Assent","abbreviation":"RA","house":"Unassigned","stageSittings":[{"id":1508,"stageId":11,"billStageId":1614,"billId":189,"date":"2008-05-22T00:00:00"}],"sortOrder":13}}