David Ruffley today sent a letter to Tim Matthews, the Chief Executive of the Highways Agency, branding the Agency's abysmal performance in the appalling weather conditions last week as a 'national disgrace'.

The text of the letter is below. It calls for disciplinary action or dismissals for the shambles last week.

3 February 2003

Text of letter to Mr Tim Matthews, Chief Executive of Highways Agency

GRIDLOCK ON M11 ON 31 JANUARY

I am writing to you with barely suppressed anger on behalf of my constituents who had to endure, in some cases, twenty hours trapped in the M11 gridlock going northbound over the evening of Thursday 30 and Friday 31 January.

I can speak with some authority on the mayhem on the M11 northbound for which your Agency must bear direct responsibility. I was stuck on the M11 from 8.00 a.m. on Friday until I managed to get off at junction 8 at 2.00 p.m.

Let me make it clear to you that just because one of your operating directors comes on television saying he was sorry does not make me or my constituents feel any better. Your time would be much better spent answering the following questions immediately:

1. Why was the M11 not adequately gritted at the appropriate time when bad weather was widely forecast in advance?

2. Why on Friday morning- when I was driving up north on the M11- were there no diversion signs put up or measures taken to stop people getting on an already gridlocked M11?

3. Jack-knifed lorries were the primary cause of the disgraceful gridlock that lasted for so many hours. What steps did you take, and when, to get lifting equipment to the scene to remove the obstacle on the northbound M11?

Apart from answering these questions- which I trust you will not take several months mulling over- I should also like to know what disciplinary action you will be taking against any of your operational directors or managers who were meant to be overseeing the M11. The Highways Agency's performance last Thursday and Friday is nothing short of a national disgrace. It is time that someone took responsibility for such abject failure that has distressed so many people. Has anyone thought of resigning yet? They should do.

Yours sincerely,

David Ruffley MP