Government to check Eurotunnel spends £33 million settlement on UK upgrades.
A senior civil servant has promised MPs that the government will audit Eurotunnel’s accounts to ensure that the £33 million it agreed to give the cross-Channel rail operator last week will be spent on improvements to its UK operations.
The government agreed the out of court settlement after Eurotunnel sued the Department for Transport for overlooking the firm when awarding contracts to three ferry companies to provide extra freight capacity after Brexit.
Bernadette Kelly, the permanent secretary at the DfT told the Public Accounts Committee the money would benefit ‘the wider economy’.
However, she didn’t rule out the possibility that Eurotunnel had been planning to upgrade its facilities before receiving the public funds.
The Government agreed the multi-million settlement with the train operator after awarding contracts to Brittany Ferries, DFDS and a start up, Seaborne Freight, last December. Eurotunnel claimed the process for handing out the contracts was ‘secretive’ and it should have been invited to bid.
The £13.8 million contract with Seaborne Freight was later cancelled after the company lost a financial backer.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Global tourism exceeds 1.5 billion travelers announces UN-Tourism
Qatar Airways offers reduced timetable to over 60 destinations
WTTC global tourism reached record economic impact of 11 trillion in 2025
Hands In, UATP join forces for airline multi-card payments
Overseas travelers to the United States declined by 2.5% in 2025