HS2 boss was accused of covering up rail delays
The new chairman of HS2 was accused of covering up delays in another large-scale rail project.
Mike Brown, the former Transport for London commissioner, will be announced as the multi-billion-pound railway scheme's new chairman on Wednesday.
But six years ago, when Mr Brown was in charge of Crossrail, the London Assembly found he covered up delays to the cross-capital underground railway line.
A 2019 report said Mr Brown 'largely ignored' crucial information from engineers in favour of telling politicians and fellow senior public officials that everything was on track.
Keith Prince, the London Assembly Conservatives' transport spokesman, said on Wednesday: 'This is nothing short of a disgrace – the allegation that the then-chair of TfL lied, attempted to cover his tracks, and was ultimately rewarded for this completely boggles the mind.
'This will be a serious knock to the faith the public have in the Government, and the Mayor of London, as they ask themselves how else the wool is being pulled over their eyes.'
Internal Transport for London (TfL) messages, published by the London Assembly in 2019, showed how Mr Brown, who was TfL's project sponsor for Crossrail, withheld crucial details of delays from Sir Sadiq Khan, the London mayor.
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