6280. CHAIRMAN: Of course, I understand why because you are not appearing for anybody else.

  6281. MR LEWIS: Quite, and perhaps I should have also mentioned about the special justification again. I forgot to mention and repeat, rather, that there is a quid pro quo that Canary Wharf Group are offering, which I doubt very much commercial developers would offer if they came before you with a petition against alterations. We are offering the use of North Quay for free and I can tell you that is a huge concession in terms of financial benefit which Canary Wharf could potentially have gained had they either allowed the compulsory purchase procedure to take place or had they come to a more commercial agreement with the Secretary of State about the use of North Quay on a temporary basis under the terms of a lease or a licence. I should mention again for the record as well, and I do not want to open up these negotiations which have been going on between the parties and I am not talking about—

  6282. CHAIRMAN: You are not going to because we are not allowed to hear it.

  6283. MR LEWIS: There is a return quid pro quo for that too in the sense that the free offer is conditional on certain time constraints in terms of how long it takes for the works to be completed, but it is there and Mr Anderson made it clear that it is there, so if you do make this amendment then the free offer stands.

  6284. CHAIRMAN: Yes, but, Mr Lewis, we have to assume we know nothing about this.

  6285. MR LEWIS: Yes.

  6286. CHAIRMAN: We have to look at it completely devoid of any incentive put forward by the Canary Wharf Group because we are not allowed to know the details, very properly, and, therefore, we have to assume there are not any.

  6287. MR LEWIS: I would like to distinguish, if I can, between the two and I do not want to get involved in the agreements. There are two separate agreements being negotiated. The first one is the station development agreement, that is the one which you have heard about which would enable Canary Wharf Group to build the station, provide the funding, et cetera.

  6288. CHAIRMAN: With the worksite?

  6289. MR LEWIS: With the worksite. There is a background to that. For three years we have also been discussing, as would normally when a petitioner deposits a petition against a private bill, if I could call it "a petitioner's agreement" as well, whereby this free offer has been on the table now for quite some period, so it is two separate discussions but, even so, I still think that it would probably be wrong for us to get into the detail of those discussions but, as background as to our justification for asking it for Canary Wharf Group only, I would allude to the fact in the background—details are kept away from you—is the free offer. I would submit that perhaps is something that should not be ignored.

  6290. CHAIRMAN: I do not see how we can come to a conclusion about your proposed amendment without ignoring the possibility of there being a commercial agreement between the Promoters and Canary Wharf. We simply cannot take it into account, we do not know the details of it, we do not want to know the details of it and, therefore, we have to assume it will not happen, have we not, or that it might not happen anyway?

  6291. MR LEWIS: I think that is better, that it might not happen, but what we are saying is if you do make the amendment --- I am going to look around for someone to—I am not going to say "tug my gown" because I am not counsel—tug my suit. If it came to it we would be prepared to give a unilateral undertaking which you could see, setting out the terms and only the terms of the free offer. I do not know if that helps your Lordships.

  6292. CHAIRMAN: Not without seeing it, it does not.

  6293. MR LEWIS: Quite. I should mention in advance of the Commons proceedings, and I will be told if I am wrong, we did forward a copy of a suggested unilateral undertaking of this sort to the Promoter. We have not done it this time and it would need some tweaking, I think, because things have changed since the Commons, but if it would assist your Lordships we would produce it.

  6294. CHAIRMAN: I think it is a pity you did not do it before but, anyway, I am not sure we are going to have time now to re-open this. You must make up your mind if you want to make a unilateral offer, you do it.

  6295. MR LEWIS: What I am instructed to say, my Lord, is if it would be any assistance we could produce a draft undertaking within 24 hours. I do not know whether you have any gaps in the timetable?

  6296. CHAIRMAN: No, we have not.

  6297. MR LEWIS: Maybe what we could do is to produce it with an explanation—obviously, it would enable the Promoters to produce their own written response—and leave it at that, so that at least you have the offer in detail underlying the amendment that we have suggested.

  6298. CHAIRMAN: Would it be likely to be different from the one that you have put forward in another place?

  6299. MR LEWIS: Yes, it would be somewhat different but not substantially different from the one that we put forward in the other place and, when I say "put forward in the other place", it was not actually put forward to the Committee in my recollection. A draft of it was sent to the Promoters.