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| Osborne: M4 bottlenecks are 'damaging the Welsh economy' | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The M4 in south Wales is one of the worst traffic bottlenecks in the UK and it is damaging the Welsh economy, the chancellor has told BBC Wales. | The M4 in south Wales is one of the worst traffic bottlenecks in the UK and it is damaging the Welsh economy, the chancellor has told BBC Wales. |
| George Osborne, visiting south Wales, said the Welsh government had the powers to start work immediately. | |
| He said he had travelled on the motorway on Monday and there were "the usual traffic problems". | He said he had travelled on the motorway on Monday and there were "the usual traffic problems". |
| "It's not been dealt with for years and years and is damaging to the Welsh economy," he said. | "It's not been dealt with for years and years and is damaging to the Welsh economy," he said. |
| Mr Osborne has previously promised to work with the Welsh government to sort out congestion in the Newport area. | |
| One option is a new three-lane motorway route to the south of the city, with a consultation ending last December. | |
| Mr Osborne told BBC Radio Wales: "I've spent the night in Cardiff but yesterday clearly, on the M4, there were your usual traffic problems. | |
| "It's one of the bottlenecks for the entire United Kingdom and, again, not dealt with for years and years and years, and damaging to the Welsh economy." | |
| The chancellor told MPs in his Budget speech last week that the UK government was introducing legislation "to give new tax and borrowing powers to the Welsh government to fund their infrastructure needs, and they can start now on work to improve the M4 in south Wales". | |
| The Welsh government has also previously been told it can use existing borrowing powers to fund the project. | |
| Plans to ease congestion on the M4 in south Wales were first unveiled by the Welsh government in 2004. | |
| Five years later the then Labour-Plaid coalition in Cardiff Bay shelved the idea when the estimated cost rose to £1bn. | |
| In April, Mr Osborne confirmed his backing for an M4 relief road, saying it was one of the most important road schemes in the UK. | |
| Later in November, UK ministers agreed Welsh ministers could borrow the money needed to fund the scheme. | |
| Gwent Wildlife Trust has campaigned against the proposals, claiming it could destroy habitats and prevent the movement of wildlife on the Gwent Levels. |