Andy Mitchell, the new Thames Tideway Tunnel CEO, together with the contractors who expect to be appointed for the eastern tunnel (a joint venture of Costain, Vinci, and Bachy) will attend a public meeting next week on the use of Chambers Wharf as a construction site for the Tunnel.

The meeting, which will take place at a local primary school, has been organised by local action group Save Your Riverside (SYS). Peter John, Leader of the London Borough of Southwark has been invited to chair the meeting.

SYS has been working closely with Sothwark to prepare the way for the Community Liaison Working Group which has the potential to act as an effective communications channel and influence on Thames Water, the Infrastructure Provider which will build the tunnel (to be appointed in coming months), and the contractors.

The public meeting on April 21 will provide the first proper opportunity that local residents and businesses affected by the construction of the tunnel have had since consent was given by ministers to use CW as a major drive site last September, to pose questions and express concerns.

SYS said it has already achieved important concessions on the original scheme proposed by Thames Water and is now seeking to build on that to ensure that the water company not only honours its legal commitments on mitigation but also goes beyond them.

In October last year Andy Mitchell was separately appointed to chair a group tasked with supporting the Government to reduce costs and improve the delivery of infrastructure projects. The Infrastructure Client Group (ICG) is working with the Government following the launch of a refreshed ‘Infrastructure Cost’ programme, which sets out a series of projects and actions to change the behaviour of government, clients and industry.