East West Rail (EWR) has clarified that a formal funding agreement with Bedford Borough Council has been in place since July 2025, following earlier information that may have led to a misunderstanding about whether a final agreement was in place.
The clarification follows a Freedom of Information response issued earlier this month, which said a “draft” Planning Performance Agreement (PPA) was in place while negotiations continued on a final version.
In a follow-up response, EWR said the explanation “could have been clearer” and may have implied that no agreement was in place.
It confirmed that a signed PPA has existed since July 2025, but is currently being renegotiated at the council’s request.
A copy of the agreement released to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) shows it was formally signed in July 2025.
EWR said this document has been released in the interests of transparency.
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The agreement sets out how the council supports the Development Consent Order (DCO) process for the Oxford–Cambridge railway.
The document confirms the council is reimbursed for work on the project through agreed “works orders” rather than a fixed upfront payment.
EWR said the existing agreement continues to apply while revised terms are negotiated, but that it was not possible to say when a new version would be agreed, adding that it is committed to completing the renegotiations “as soon as possible”.
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It also confirmed that agreements with councils along the route are broadly based on the same principles, but vary to reflect local requirements.
The earlier response had stated that a final agreement was still being put in place, but EWR said its earlier wording may have led to that interpretation rather than reflecting the existence of a signed agreement.
By John Guinn
Local Democracy Reporter
