'These are the reasons Rachel Reeves's £9bn Lower Thames Crossing plan will fail'

Rachel Reeves announcing Government backing for the £9billion Lower Thames Crossing "might be better than nothing" - but the current version of the scheme will still not solve traffic issues, the area's Reform UK MP has said.

James McMurdock, who represents South Basildon and East Thurrock in the Commons, told Express.co.uk that this is the closest thing to a compliment he could make. He has been against the current iteration of the tunnel "from the beginning".

The Chancellor announced in her speech on growth this morning that ministers would work with the private sector to construct the 14.3-mile road that would link the A2 and M2 in Kent to the M25 in Essex.

It would be tunnelled under the River Thames, its function being to reduce gridlock at the Dartford Tunnel.

Ms Reeves added that the project "will improve connectivity at Dover, Felixstowe and Harwich, alleviating severe congestion as goods destined to export come from the North and the Midlands, and across the country, to markets overseas".

But Mr McMurdock remains pessimistic, saying that the proposal could be better. It does not accomodate public transport, such as buses, he said, and its benefits will be "far more limited than people hope", as it "does not solve capacity issues".

He added: "The closest thing to a compliment I can pay is to say something might be better than nothing and even that is doubtful."

The Reform MP said that the new crossing between Essex and Kent was a "unique opportunity" to resolve the transport capacity issues, to free the flow of traffic and to deliver major economic growth.

But he said that so much time - and £800million of taxpayers' cash - has already been wasted on the project.

He said: "The Tories wasted 14 years and £800million of taxpayers' money to create a project that will cost at least £9billion, take five years to complete, and would still result in the QE2 bridge being 20,000 vehicles per day over max capacity after just five years of use. This is a quarter century of wasted opportunity.

"Six million tonnes of CO2. £9billion of taxpayers' money, and not even sorting out traffic jams. A mega project that doesn’t even meet its own brief."

But Howard Cox, motoring campaigner and founder of FairFuelUK, is more positive.

He said: “The overcrowded and chronically congested South East will welcome the Chancellor’s announcement. Environmentalists will scream loudly, but this vital road user artery is long overdue.

"It should take considerable international haulage away from the Dartford Crossing and Europe’s busiest motorway, the M25. We await the cost to build, how it will be funded, and the toll charges. And how long will it take to be in place?

"But it would be churlish for me to criticise this announcement, as this is the second good thing that Rachel Reeves has announced for drivers. The other is keeping Fuel Duty Frozen till 2026 following FairFuelUK’s 15 years of campaigning.”

Andrew Baxter, chief executive officer of Europa Worldwide Group, believes that the Lower Thames Crossing will drive growth for businesses.

He said: “Logistics UK estimates that up to £200 million is lost every year in productivity due to congestion at the Dartford Crossing, with businesses across the country feeling the pressure of delays to deliveries.

“This pressure can cause thousands of pounds worth of delays for us, our customers and British business. Delays in transit pose a risk to reputations, not to mention the financial consequences of not being able to meet consumer demand."

He added: “Therefore, we are strongly of the opinion that the Lower Thames Crossing will drive growth for businesses, offering them more opportunities to trade with their British and European markets, and thus boosting our economy – a key objective for the Government’s Growth Mission.”