Bradley Thomas, MP for Bromsgrove and the Villages, is urging the Transport Secretary to intervene over BREP and to hand delivery of the project over to National Highways.
In an unprecedented step, the local MP has made the request in a letter to the Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander in which he calls on the Secretary of State to instruct National Highways to “review this scheme and administer it to completion.”
Bradley has grown increasingly frustrated with Worcestershire County Council’s handling of this major project, and he’s therefore taken this step as he believes the County Council “lacks the expertise to deliver a scheme of this importance.”
The County Council recently confirmed to Bradley that BREP’s overall completion date has been officially delayed for a second time.
Residents and businesses were first told BREP would be completed by December 2025 or early 2026. This was then pushed back to December 2026 and now the County Council has said the project won’t be completed until spring 2027.
In light of this further delay, Bradley has written to Cllr Tom Wells, Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Highways and Transport, to ask what penalties the contractor will face as a result of this second delay.
By escalating his concerns to the Transport Secretary, Bradley hopes this will lead to the scheme being “completed as swiftly as possible and with respect to the taxpayer.”
Given the importance of the A38 as a local and regional arterial route, as well as the importance of this road as a piece of national infrastructure, particularly when the M5 becomes gridlocked, Bradley believes there is a strong case for the Transport Secretary to intervene.
And given the Department for Transport is providing the majority share of the funding for BREP, Bradley has also asked the Transport Secretary a series of questions around how this scheme is being delivered.
Bradley said: “After two official delays, Bromsgrove has lost faith in Worcestershire County Council when they say BREP will now be completed by spring 2027.
“Residents and businesses are at the end of their tether with the constant delays and roadworks. The delays are hampering our local economy and damaging Bromsgrove’s reputation.
“I take no pleasure in saying that I have lost confidence in the County Council’s ability to deliver this project and I’ve taken the unprecedented step of asking the Transport Secretary to intervene by instructing National Highways to review this scheme and administer it to completion.
“The severe negative impact on Bromsgrove of how this scheme is being delivered warrants this unprecedented intervention by National Highways.
“Despite the County Council’s attempts to explain away the delays, no one in Bromsgrove understands why this project is taking so long to complete. It’s not as if they’re building a whole new dual carriageway.
“This question and many more will need to be answered, and there will be a time for that, but for now BREP must be completed as swiftly as possible and on budget.
“It’s evident to us all that the County Council lacks the ability to get BREP completed efficiently. The Transport Secretary should do the right thing and intervene so we can get Bromsgrove moving again.”
