In the Crossrail sponsor board minutes No95a recently published on the TfL website and relating to the draft minutes of a meeting on Thursday July 26, 2018, there is mention of meetings between the TfL comms team and the Joint Sponsor Team on the stage 3 opening of Crossrail. This included a meeting between Simon Baugh of the DfT and Vernon Everitt of TfL on July 24, 2018. Please can you provide all papers presented at the meeting between Mr Baugh and Mr Everitt, and the minutes of that meeting? Please can you provide all documents/strategies prepared from July 2018 onwards by the communications team in relation to the proposed December 2018 opening date and subsequent decision not to open on that date? Please can this include minutes of communications meetings held to discuss the opening/failure to open as proposed.

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Our Ref:          FOI-2789-1819

Thank you for your email received by us on 22nd January 2019 asking for details about a meeting between Simon Baugh of the DfT and Vernon Everitt of TfL on July 24, 2018.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we hold some of the information you require.

You asked for all papers presented at the meeting between Mr Baugh and Mr Everitt, and the minutes of that meeting.

There were no minutes produced as a result of the meeting, but I can provide the paper that was discussed and the agenda. The meeting was requested by the DfT to discuss joint working between the TfL and DfT communications teams as the Crossrail project moved towards completion, with the opening of the central section planned for December 2018. The agenda for the meeting was as follows:

- Intros
- Joint DfT & TfL working agreement on Elizabeth line (supporting document attached)
- Current progress on the project
- AOB

You also asked for all documents and strategies prepared from July 2018 onwards by the communications team in relation to the proposed Elizabeth line December 2018 opening date and subsequent decision not to open on that date. You also requested minutes of communications meetings held to discuss the opening/failure to open as proposed. We can confirm we hold the information you require and are able to disclose documents produced by both the TfL and Crossrail Ltd communication teams.

Throughout July and until 29 August 2018, Crossrail Ltd was working towards an opening date of December and communications plans continued to support this.
The communications teams at TfL, DfT and Crossrail Ltd continued to develop launch plans for the opening of stage 3 of the Crossrail project and all day-to-day communications continued to include the message of the planned opening date.

Please find attached the “Elizabeth line Launch PR campaign” and “PR road map”, which provide details of that continuing launch plan work and expectation of a December 2018 opening.

Also attached are minutes from the 20th July Elizabeth line Communications Delivery Board, and the communications update for the 26th July Crossrail Sponsor Board. These set out all of the activity in hand to promote the opening of the central section in December and plans for activity beyond that date. Also attached is a draft of the “Elizabeth line phase 3 leaflet” which was being developed in mid-August 2018 and makes clear the line will open in December 2018.

In addition, a press event was held at Tottenham Court Road Crossrail station on the 10th July for media including Reuters and London Reconnections, and the supporting press release for that event is attached, which references a December opening.

Representatives of the CBI were also taken on a tour of the Canary Wharf Crossrail worksite on the 24th August. The supporting Crossrail Ltd presentation from this visit is attached, which states the Elizabeth line with launch in December 2018.

As TfL officials made clear at London Assembly hearings on the 21st December 2018 and 9th January 2019, by the end of July 2018 it was clear that Crossrail Ltd’s project schedule was facing acute challenges. While communications planning continued for a December 2018 launch it was also prudent for the communications teams to, in parallel, begin scenario planning for a potential change to the launch schedule.

Preparation for this was essential because, in the event of Crossrail Ltd making a decision to change their delivery schedule, they are required to issue an Adverse Event Notice to the DfT and TfL, as Joint Sponsors. This would trigger an announcement to the London Stock Exchange, stakeholders and the media. It was, therefore, prudent scenario planning for the communications teams to begin developing draft material for such an eventuality, in parallel with the continuing plans for a December opening.

Please find attached the iterations of the draft press releases and question and answer brief prepared for a potential decision by Crossrail Ltd to change the opening date. These went through various edits and iterations throughout August 2018 as further scenario planning work continued, particularly ahead of the Crossrail Ltd Board meeting on the 29th August.

Following the decision by the Crossrail Ltd Board on the 29th August to delay the opening date, these draft materials were used to form the final public announcement made by Crossrail Ltd on the 31st August. 
 
You will also find attached a presentation, created by the Crossrail Ltd communications team on the 16th August, which was used for planning purposes, should the decision to change the schedule be taken by the Crossrail Ltd senior executive at the Crossrail Ltd Board meeting on the 29th August. A later version of this presentation was created by the Crossrail Ltd communications team on the 24th August, but was not completed, nor shared with TfL.

In accordance with TfL’s obligations under Data Protection legislation some information has been withheld from the attached correspondence, as required by section 40(2) of the FOI Act. This is because disclosure of this personal data would be a breach of the legislation, specifically the first principle of Article 5 of the General Data Protection Regulation which requires all processing of personal data to be fair and lawful. It would not be fair to disclose this personal information when the individuals have no expectation it would be disclosed and TfL has not satisfied one of the conditions which would make the processing ‘fair’.

This exemption to the right of access to information is an absolute exemption and not subject to an assessment of whether the public interest favours use of the exemption.

If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]

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