Ministers and the City’s biggest businesses appeared to be in deadlock yesterday in talks over the funding of Crossrail. Financial Times


Negotiations between government and City business groups have been under way for months but there remains a £300m to £400m funding gap for the long-delayed £10bn rail link between Canary Wharf and Heathrow.

Transport secretary Ruth Kelly told the Labour’s party conference yesterday she was ‘working round the clock to strike a deal on Crossrail – a challenge that has eluded governments for generations, but is now within our grasp’.

However, the City argues that the money it has already paid in taxes should be more than enough for government to back the project.