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Demolishing large parts of central London? For a railway that goes west to east, whilst leaving most of the poorest areas to the north and south of London with extra bus services. Good thinking!

- Mark, Venice, Italy

@ Roy, England

Take a close look at the distribution of finance through the Common Agricultural Policy matey!

@ John Buckeridge, London

I don't want my children being governed by an unelected unaccountable executive as we are now. I prefer democracy and self determination for the future of this country and all that that will bring. Perhaps you and your children could move to France?

- Frank, Home Counties, England.

"Admirable that he is not trumpeting his own success here as a certain former communist mayor undoubtedly would have done!
"

Er, from the TfL press release:

"Photographs of the Mayor meeting Simon Brooks, EIB Vice-President at City Hall earlier today are available from the TfL Press Office"

Stop talking rubbish, St, Boris is, as anyone with half a brain can see, extremely conscious of his public image, which is why he has so many spin doctors.

"That's the problem, it stops everywhere"

Um, a cursory glance at some of the timings from places like Acton or Southall to the West End/City show them coming in hugely faster in % terms, along with a much more frequent and convenient service.

"Give it a break will you - I don't need the future of my children damaged by people like you who want to isolate this country and take away valuable foreign investment and jobs."

Hear hear. The EU provides a huge market for British companies and they don't want out. That's good enough for me, since, unlike the UKIP motormouths, they're the people who provide jobs and investment. As far as I can see, this is the EU helping British industry become more competitive by providing a better transport system in one of the continent's key centres.

- Tom, London, UK

"Worse transport ... than the rest of the EU: that'us (sic) !" - Alan, Islington,Europe

This rose tinted view that everything outside the UK is perfection is hilarious.

I've stood for hours with waiting for delayed TGV trains, had to walk home through the streets of Paris, Lyon and Milan when metro systems have either had signaling faults or, more usually, been halted for days by strikes and don't get me started on the so called efficient Swiss (their whole country's rail network is smaller than most franchises in the UK).

And it's strange how London comes out as the best city in the world for public transport when overseas visitors are given a vote.

There's no better example of the grass being always greener.

- Sarah, Bath, UK

A huge victory for Boris. Admirable that he is not trumpeting his own success here as a certain former communist mayor undoubtedly would have done!

- St, London

Oh it's nauseating St, like listening to some party loyal parrot - go away.

We've got the money - lets just celebrate the fact.

- David, N10

@ Frank, Home Counties, England

The payments are doubling to £6.4bn because of the fall in the value of the pound. To put it in perspective, £6.4bn represents 0.002% of UK GDP and would just about fund the widening of 63 miles of the M25.

Give it a break will you - I don't need the future of my children damaged by people like you who want to isolate this country and take away valuable foreign investment and jobs.

- John Buckeridge, London

- Frank, Home Counties, England:

"In the meantime the French enjoy a comfortable life style courtesy of the UK citizens and others."

France is a net contributor to the EU too.

- Roy, England

The EU gets such a bad press but this shows it isn't all bad. Let's hope this shuts up some of the stupid UKIP and BNP voters who are desperate for Britain to leave Europe and cosy up to the USA - who don't even like us much anyway. The EU might not be perfect but it does help us out, and it's never a good idea to shun your neighbours and go it alone in the world.

- Matt, London, England, Europe

@ Anthony Perry, London N4 2JZ UK

We would have this money and more if we were not paying billions to the EU in the first place. Britain's net payments to Brussels will double to £6.4bn within four years, according to figures from the Treasury.

The chief underlying cause is a summit deal struck by Tony Blair in December 2005 to slash the UK's rebate by exempting the new member states, in perpetuity.

We are paying more and more and receiving less and less. In the meantime the French enjoy a comfortable life style courtesy of the UK citizens and others.

- Frank, Home Counties, England.

London businesses will have their bill increased by 10-15% next April, on top of the 5.8% this April.
Why is no one saying anything?
Enough is enough

- Mario Kempe, london

We give Europe £6.4 billion of British money each year to this corrupt organisation. We must get out of Europe, then we can fund our own projects with money to spare. Let us get our boarders back and stop all immigration. It will be too late once they have let Turkey in.

- Mags, London

To Philip ' Totally unecessary project and a massive waste of money '. You obviously do not use the tube. The Tube needs massive investment and Crossrail will undoubtedly ease congestion on the network. For far too long Londoners have had to put up with cattle like conditions. I simply cannot comprehend anyone who is against the idea of Crossrail, in fact I believe the government should already be thinking about Crossrail II which would incorporate a new line outside of the current tube network and stretch north to south across London.

- Jas, London, England

"Unstoppable Crossrail". That's the problem, it stops everywhere. Shenfield to Liverpool Street: 20-30 minutes; Liverpool Street to Paddington: 20 minutes; Paddington to Reading: 20-30 minutes. Unstoppable Crossrai; Shenfield to Reading: pack your overnight bag.

- Bj, London

Tom and Anthony - the UK already pays about £7 billion a year to the EU and provides capital for the European Investment Bank.

Nice of them to charge us interest on our own money.

If we weren't in this mess, we would have been able to finance Crossrail directly, without having to levy a £3 billion penalty on London's businesses.

Get Britain out, please, if you're business-friendly, Mr Cameron.

- Jools, London

The likely next prime minister is challenging voters and taxpayers to challenge public sector bureaucracy and inefficiency.

TfL need to explain to taxpayers why they have a project structure with so many layers of suppliers when surely it is more cost effective and efficient to do more management in house. The project does not need to procure an expensive supply chain in the worst recession in living memory.

This project has been staffed by very expensive interim managers and management consultants for far too long. The new permanent directors need to get a grip now or face CrossRail being cancelled yet again.

- Gabriel, Essex

This loan will make it even more difficult for the Cameroons to cancel Crossrail if they won the general election.

The fact it is from the the european union helps rub salt into the wound that we get nothing from being part of europe. One only has to see the need to finance an high speed network as further proof of the need of further loans from europe.

As for the link to Abbey Wood this is the one that serves Canary Whalf which will become one of the most importent stations on Crossrail as the Isle of Dogs and North Greenwich peninsula undergo future development.

As for those who call for tube upgrades well TCR is only happpening because of Crossrail and many underground stations will be upgraded as part of the Crossrail project (from Ealing Broadway to Stratford).

The recent go-ahead for GWR electrification will allow Crossrail to be extended to its original terminus of Reading!!

As to those who want it to serve other destinantions well lets just concentrate on building the present scheme as further expansion can be decided at a later date.

- Melvyn Windebank, Canvey Island, Essex

How much of this money is going towards management obscene pension pots and bonuses. Will TfL laso empotying more useless jobsworths such a diveristy managers (Olympics are employing 10 at £100k each p.a). This money could have come from economies in public spending

- Strongbow Sullivan, Paris,France.

At last!! But the rest of bloody Europe have to come to London's rescue. Why can't we fund a decent railway in this delapidated and embarrasing country? We should be ashamed.

- Rod, Epping, UK

A huge victory for Boris. Admirable that he is not trumpeting his own success here as a certain former communist mayor undoubtedly would have done!

- St, London

Love the fact it's the EU giving us money, don't they mean our own money back we paid in anyway?

- P Staker, Socialist Republic of Londonistan.

Totally unecessary project and a massive waste of money. Just like The Dome & The Olympics. Something London is good at. More money than sense.

- Philip, London, England

It would make more sense if the increasingly important transport link at Kings Cross/ St Pancras was connected to Crossrail.

- Simon Ellis, London E8

Thank Heavens for the EU , having the patience of dragging this backward country into the modern age

Worse transport, worse hospitals, worse everything than the rest of the EU: that'us !

- Alan, Islington,Europe

Sensible decision, although obviously jarring with Tory protests about 'unsustainable public borrowing'. Which only goes to show that it's a different matter when you're actually running the place.

Also the EIB is a European Union institution, so this is one obvious answer to the question 'what does the EU do for us?'.

- Tom, London, UK

To gain more commercial credibility and support from the private sector (whose contribution is currently inadequate for this project, TfL need to explain why they have appointed two external project management partners for c £500 million in the middle of a recession when they should have been building an in-house client team.

TfL has gone backwards managing capital investment and should urgently be establishing in-house client control on Crossrail and not appointed rediculously expensive management consultants.

The current lack of strategic control on Crossrail is increasing the risk that is project will add 25-50% on its costs assuming it is permitted by the next Government to continue.

- Ron, London

A good example of why our future prosperity and importance in the world depends on friendly co-operation with Europe.

- Anthony Perry, London N4 2JZ UK

Good to see Boris putting in the hard work getting this railway built, unlike Ken who said a lot about Crossrail but did nothing apart from raising taxes to pay for his vanity projects.

- Sarah, London

Note the word LOAN, not subsidy. No mention of interest rates.

We could easily save this money, and more, by not building the useless link to Abbey Wood and by making BAA pay for teh Heathrow link, instead of making poor Londoners subsidise the air travel of the relativly wealthy

- James, London UK

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