Thurrock Council leader John Kent has slammed the latest parliamentary report on "strategic river crossings".

Mr Kent and MP Jackie Doyle-Price are both in favour of a new river crossing at Canvey, but the new report from the Transport Select Committee has ruled out this option.

Councillor Kent said: “I am disappointed. The Select Committee report on the Lower Thames Crossing doesn’t demand that government changes the way it works, or examine other options."

MPs writing in the report also expressed upset in the report with the new Thames crossing delay.

The Select Committee report was critical of the amount of time it is taking to reach a decision on the river crossing and criticised the Transport Minister for not showing enough leadership in finding a consensus between Kent and Thurrock.

The report wrote: “We are disappointed that the Department has made such little progress on delivering a new crossing during this Parliament.

"The Minister must show more leadership in finding a consensus between the affected local authorities.

"Reaching that consensus has proven difficult as the positive and negative impacts of new crossings fall unequally on different areas.

The five original locations for a new river crossing were in Dartford, Grays, Tilbury, Canvey and Southend. 

Now only options A and C, Dartford and Tilbury, are being discussed by government. 

The report went on: “Representatives from Kent and Essex County Council told us that they supported Option C - in Tilbury.

"However Gravesham and Thurrock (that would host Option C,) disputed that Option C was the best scheme to deliver those aims and stated that other locations for a crossing were more suitable."

The report added that delaying any decision until after the General Election had also led “Kent County Council to doubt whether the next Government will retain the policy” while “Thurrock recommended that the DfT could provide more certainty to local authorities by working more closely with them”.

Councillor Kent said: “When I was giving evidence in January, the committee seems focused solely on finding a consensus. I’m happy to work towards a consensus so long as others – the counties and the government – are as open with us about their proposals as we are with them. Consensus, by definition, is a two-way process.”

Councillor Kent did add that the report does back up much of what he told the committee when he gave evidence in January and does call on the government to work more closely with local councils.

He said: “I can’t say I am surprised by the report, but I have some disappointment. I was hoping for more.”

A final complaint made by MPs in the report was the amount of time it has taken for the government to reduce the number of options for the crossing.

The report wrote: “The options for the crossings' locations have also now been reduced from five to two. It is disappointing that it has taken the Government nearly five years to do this."