Background

• The first direct rail service from London's Waterloo to Paris launched in November 1994. Four years later work started on a higher speed rail link to replace this original service. The original speed was 100 mph and the journey took three hours.
  
  

Funding

• The British Government knew a higher speed rail link was necessary, but existing legislation stood in the way of any public funding. So when the companies ran into financial difficulties, they were told there could be no government grants for an international rail passenger service. The 1996 act was the solution. It contained a proviso allowing the secretary of state to sanction any financial support needed to providers of the domestic part of the rail link.
  
  

Powers

• The 1996 act offered funding but also legislated for related environmental and planning issues. Qualifying local authorities were empowered under Schedule 6 of the act to have a say in construction and planning matters if their part of the route was affected.
  
  The final stage of the high speed link opened in 2007 from its new home at London's St Pancras International (see References 2).
  
  The Act remains in force so as to cover any future construction developments (see References 4).