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<p>Safety will always be the key priority for rail. Reflecting this, and in the light
of outstanding safety issues, consent for the electricity link project was suspended
for safety reasons in October 2017, preventing construction work from continuing to
the next stage.</p><p> </p><p>Government is represented by UK officials on both the
Channel Tunnel Intergovernmental Commission (IGC) and the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority
(CTSA). Both of these groups have been involved with the ElecLink project since it
was first presented to the CTSA by Eurotunnel in 2011.</p><p> </p><p>A working group,
comprised of members from the UK and French delegations to the CTSA, Eurotunnel and
the cable project team, was established and meets frequently to ensure that safety
issues associated with the cable installation and its interaction with the Eurotunnel
railway operations are addressed. That group has both formally and informally assessed
submissions from Eurotunnel, as well as completing site inspections, observing at
safety tests and attending and convening specialist working groups.</p><p> </p><p>The
CTSA working group is currently in the process of assessing Eurotunnel’s latest safety
submission, which requests consent for the project to proceed to the next stage of
construction. The IGC has asked Eurotunnel to produce a safety case relating to all
relevant factors, including an independently assessed Safety Assessment Report, for
submission to the CTSA working group.</p><p>No operational precedents for this project
have been identified.</p>
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