Council seeks to overturn gagging order following change of political control

One of three councils that signed gagging orders with Highways England over the Oxford-Cambridge Expressway project has said it will reconsider the issue, and two now oppose the project outright.

Oxfordshire County Council, South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse districts signed non-disclosure agreements (NDA), in the case of the latter two before last May’s elections at which the Conservatives lost control of both councils.

Buckinghamshire County Council and Aylesbury Vale District Council were also asked to sign but refused.

The expressway is intended to link Oxford, Milton Keynes and Cambridge, roughly shadowing a restored railway line and filling a 30 miles ’missing link’ of motorway.

Vale of White Horse Council’s Liberal Democrat leader Emily Smith said: “This NDA was signed before the May elections.

“On learning of its existence, I asked Highways England to allow the council to confirm an NDA was signed, in the interests of openness and transparency. I will be exploring the decision to enter into an NDA and reviewing the council's procedures to see if any changes need to be made.”

Both Vale of White Horse and South Oxfordshire’s new ‘rainbow alliance’ administration of non-Conservative parties have now decided to oppose the project.
South Oxfordshire said it would “oppose the Expressway project in all forms, including expansion of existing (or new) roads in the district to form part of it”.

It will instead support better rail and public transport links across the area.

Buckinghamshire County Council’s Conservative leader Martin Tett said he had refused to sign a non-disclosure agreements despite a request from Highways England.
“The NDA would have allowed Buckinghamshire County Council early sight of the proposed route for the Expressway but we would not have been allowed to discuss this with either our wider membership or our residents,” Cllr Tett said.

“We might also have found it much more difficult to challenge the route if we decided to do so. We remain unconvinced that a new high speed semi-motorway through the middle of north Bucks is the right solution. We are arguing for improving local roads so that local people can directly see the benefits.”

A Highways England spokesperson said: “When we are developing major improvements like the ones we are proposing for this corridor, it is really useful to be able to speak with other organisations in confidence.

“It allows us to identify, develop and test potential viable route options and make sure that that options we end up putting forward for public consultation are the best ones.”