JEREMY Hunt, MP for South West Surrey, this morning responded to the publication of the Department of Transport’s Inspector’s Report into the A3 Tunnel. The report, which is over 300 pages long, recommends an additional six-week consultation on the economics behind the scheme, as a result of the increased costs. It also suggests the old A3 should be closed when the new tunnel is built.Jeremy said: “This is a document we have been waiting for so long. However it will not please everyone. “I know many people will be disappointed about the decision to close the old A3. A number of powerful arguments made by local residents appear to have been rejected by the inspector. But it is highly unlikely the government would overturn the inspector's recommendation because that could lead to a judicial review. ""The project is more likely to be cancelled than changed, and so we need to exercise extreme caution in the tone with which we respond to this consultation.”This morning the Secretary of State for Transport, and for Communities and Local Government, and for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said that they are ""minded to"" accept the Inspector's recommendations in favour of the published scheme for the construction of a tunnel to carry the A3 under the Devil's Punchbowl at Hindhead.However, their final decision will be taken in the light of responses to a limited consultation exercise to address the fact that since the close of the local inquiry there has been a significant increase in costs of the scheme, now estimated to be £370.9m. The six-week consultation will start today.The Department of Transport has said: “In the course of the inquiry the published scheme was compared with a number of alternative options, and it is therefore appropriate that interested parties be given the opportunity to comment on this specific change before a final decision is taken.”