Hilary Benn, MP, visits Prescott Lock
8th Apr 2008
The Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP, Secretary of State for the Environment, yesterday (Monday 7 April) visited the Prescott Lock construction site to view the first, 21-tonne 'fishbelly' sluice gate being installed by contractor Volker Stevin as part of the £20 million British Waterways-led project.
The work is a major milestone towards the completion of the structure later in the year.
Hilary Benn said: "The Government has made a commitment that the London 2012 Olympics will be the greenest ever, and it is projects like the Prescott Lock which will make this possible.
"Environmental responsibility does not begin when we hit 2012 only, if we are serious about our commitment to a sustainable games then we have to live up to these standards in our design and construction phases also.
That is why I am delighted today to see the lock which will allow the movement of construction materials by the capital’s waterways rather than on roads."
British Waterways' chairman, Tony Hales, added: "This exciting project simply would not have happened without the Olympics or without the hard work put in by Defra and its agencies – British Waterways, the Environment Agency and Natural England – not to mention the many funders and partners in the project. It was a pleasure to show the Secretary of State around the site today and I look forward to inviting him back later in the year to travel through the lock by boat."
New gate installation helps create sustainable Olympics for London.
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