Committee News Release

CWAV 01/2004

Thursday 16 September 2004

COMMITTEE EXPRESSES FRUSTRATION AT FURTHER DELAYS TO RAILWAY BILL

The Waverley Railway Committee set up to examine the Bill which would authorise a new railway from Edinburgh to the Borders has agreed that there will have to be a delay of some months to its scrutiny of the proposals.

The reason for the delay is due to the promoter of the Bill, Scottish Borders Council, failing to notify around owners of 130 properties in Gorebridge and Galashiels due to be affected should the construction of the railway go ahead.

The owners of this land should have been notified at the time of the introduction of the Bill in September 2003, and they then should have been given sixty days to object to the Bill. This notification failure by the promoter’s contractors (known as land referencers) was apparently only discovered by the promoter’s agent in the last few weeks.

At a meeting of the Committee today it was decided that it could not progress with its scrutiny of the Bill until the new objection period has run its course and any new objectors are given a chance to comment on various accompanying documents to the Bill.

Convener of the Committee, Tricia Marwick said—

“It is hugely disappointing that this further delay has arisen. Let me be quite clear – this delay arises directly as a result of a failing in the notification process that is the responsibility of the promoter.

“This delay will be frustrating to both those individuals who wish this Bill to go ahead and, equally, those individuals who have already objected to the Bill and who wish to make their case to the Committee. This delay will likely further increase anxiety and uncertainty amongst these objectors.

“All members of the Committee share this frustration. Nonetheless the Committee agreed that it would be quite wrong to proceed to oral evidence on this Bill before a large number of individuals had the opportunity to object to the Bill. In the interest of fairness, potential new objectors should be given the same opportunity to comment on the Bill as the original objectors.”

Background

The Waverley Railway ( Scotland ) Bill authorises the reconstruction of a railway south of Newcraighall in Edinburgh to Tweedbank in the Scottish Borders has been published today by Parliament. The Bill will also make provision about planning agreements and developer contributions relating to the railway. The Bill is being promoted by Scottish Borders Council.

The Bill was introduced into the Scottish Parliament on 11 September 2003 . Under the Parliament’s Standing Orders, a 60-day objection period commenced on 12 September and concluded on 10 November 2003 . There are currently 117 objections to the Bill outstanding.

• The Bill is currently in the Preliminary Stage, the first stage in a three-Stage process. At this Stage, the Committee has three functions—

• To consider and report on the general principles of the Bill;
• To consider and report on whether the Bill should proceed as a Private Bill, that is to say
• Is the purpose of the Bill to obtain for the promoter particular powers or benefits in excess of or in conflict with the general law?
• Do the accompanying documents to the Bill satisfy the technical criteria that are set down in the Standing Orders and are they adequate to allow proper scrutiny of the Bill?
• To give preliminary consideration to all objections and reject any objection where the objector’s interests are, in the opinion of the Committee, not clearly adversely affected by the Private Bill. The Committee will also give full consideration to those objections (or parts thereof) which relate to the whole Bill.

The Committee had previously agreed to invite objectors, SEPA, SNH and Historic Scotland to submit written comments on the adequacy of the accompanying documents to the Bill and the Bill’s general principles.

This new objection period will conclude on 15 November 2004 at which point any new objectors will be given the opportunity to comment on the accompanying documents and general principles of the Bill.

Private Bills in the Scottish Parliament

Private Bills are introduced by a "promoter" who can be an individual person, a corporate body or an unincorporated association of persons. By introducing such a Bill, the promoter is hoping to gain some additional powers or benefits in addition to, or in conflict with, the general law.

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Richard Holligan: Tel 0131 348 6269
email: richard.holligan@scottish.parliament.uk

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The Private Bills Unit: Tel 0131 348 6789
email: private.bills@scottish.parliament.uk

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