Mrs. Anne Main MP

Member of Parliament for St Albans

House of Commons

London, SW1A 0AA

18 December 2006

Dear Constituent,

Please find enclosed a copy of a letter I have received from Yvette Cooper, Minister for Housing and Planning at the Department for Communities and Local Government in response to the letter I sent to Rt Hon Ruth Kelly, requesting that she take time to visit the site of the proposed rail freight interchange.

I understand that the next meeting at which the District Council will have a chance to rule on the issue will be on 19th February, and is currently scheduled for 7pm in the Alban Arena. Given the hundreds of people who tried to attend the last meeting, this meeting is sure to be well attended and I hope the Council takes on board the views of the Highways Department, which show that they are not happy with the scheme, something which I raised at the debate on the matter on the 17th October, and the views of the hundreds of constituents who have written to me to voice their discontents.

I helped man the STRIFE anti rail freight stall on Sunday 10th December, where we collected hundreds more signatures from worried members of the community about the proposal. I will also be jointing them on Saturday 23rd for a similar protest in St Albans City Centre. This proposal is a potential disaster for St Albans, and is something we all need to unite against, whatever our political persuasion.

Best wishes,

Anne Main MP