The ninth meeting of the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce was held yesterday, 10 December 2020.

It was chaired by Transport Minister, Baroness Vere. Attendees included the Project Director Dana Skelley plus representatives from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, the Greater London Authority, Transport for London (TfL), and the Port of London Authority.

Dana Skelley, speaking on behalf of the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce, said:

The taskforce acknowledged the publication yesterday of DfT-commissioned reports by consultants AECOM and Prof. Norman Fleck which provide reviews of the condition of the bridge’s pedestals and of the recent modelling and analysis of the bridge by other engineering consultants.

Taskforce members agreed to meet again next week to discuss the reports’ contents and implications.

Taskforce members were updated on the first of a series of collaborative meetings with TfL to explore the current full works programme and cost schedules in detail and to consider alternative procurement approaches, shift patterns and de-risking the programme with advanced investigation work.

The taskforce was also pleased to hear from TfL that procurement for the temporary ferry service was proceeding on schedule.

The taskforce also agreed to continue discussions on funding and the temporary road bridge proposal from Foster and Partners at its meeting next week.

The Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce was set up by the Department for Transport in September 2020 to work towards safely reopening the Hammersmith Bridge. The taskforce is chaired by Baroness Vere and includes representatives from TfL, London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, Network Rail, the Greater London Authority and the Port of London Authority.

Lucinda Orr is a practising barrister, called to the Bar of England and Wales (2006), and a Partner in the disputes specialist law firm, Enyo Law LLP, based in the City of London, where she specialises in international commercial litigation and civil fraud. She has previously chaired the Bar Association for Commerce, Finance and Industry (2012-2015) and the Employed Barristers’ Committee for England and Wales (2017-2019), and currently sits on the General Management Committees of her Inn of Court (2018 – to present) and the Bar Council (2012 – to present).

In addition to her legal qualifications, she holds M.A. (2003) and M.St. (2004) degrees in History from Oxford University, where she was President of the Oxford University Numismatic Society, the History Society and the Young Friends of the Ashmolean Museum. She has archaeological experience from excavations at the Roman site, Tripontium, in the late 1990s, and cataloguing the coin finds.

Having been a keen collector of coins for over 30 years, she is a Fellow of The Royal Numismatic Society, and has longstanding membership of the British Numismatic Society and the London Coin Club. She also studies and collects antique jewellery and is a member of the Society of Jewellery Historians.

This role is not remunerated. This appointment has been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments, the process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The Government’s Governance Code requires that any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years is declared. This is defined as holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation or candidature for election. Ms Orr has not declared any activity.