Tube talks break down over funding

Talks between Ken Livingstone and the Government on Tube funding ended in acrimony today as the two sides disagreed on what had been decided.

The Mayor claimed to have made progress in his demand for a £1.5billion "dowry" from the Treasury to cover what he believes is a funding gap between its pledges and what is actually needed to pay for Tube improvements. But the Department of Transport gave short shrift to Mr Livingstone's claim that Transport Minister John Spellar had said he wanted "things to be resolved" in terms of the funding gap.

The department insisted that spending plans for the Tube were fixed until the next three-year spending review in 2004.