Contributions
939 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDTopical QuestionsMy hon. Friend follows my right hon. Friend the Member for Gainsborough (Sir Edward Leigh) and my hon. Friend the Member for Cleethorpes (Martin Vickers) in raising that matter at…14 Dec 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsAs things stand, we are unable to operate that service because the trans-Pennine route upgrade, which is delivering the billions of pounds’ worth of investment to enhance the…14 Dec 2023HANSARDTopical QuestionsI am sure that everyone waves at the hon. Gentleman, great man that he is. It was great to meet him when he came to the Department. We talked about Durham coastal service and…14 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsMy hon. Friend is a champion for the Chiltern line, and he does indeed bend my ear on that subject—he is right to do so, because that line is getting busier now, which is a…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsI hope my hon. Friend’s constituents will be comforted by the order, because it is not just an order for new TransPennine express trains but a complete upgrade of the TransPennine…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsThe Prime Minister’s Network North plan did just that—electrification for Hull, between Sheffield and Manchester, and between Sheffield and Leeds. They are vast projects, not…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsI will, if I may, deal with the matter of HS2 head-on. The shadow rail Minister made that same point, saying that this was somehow linked to HS2, and it has now been made from the…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsWe are aware that performance needs to be a lot better than it is currently, not just from train manufacturers but from Network Rail. Indeed, I was due to meet with the train…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsI can give the hon. Member that assurance. We will be bringing those contract tenders forward; we now have four train manufacturers, which is to be celebrated. We have CAF in…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsAs I have mentioned, we have written to ask rolling stock owners what more action they can take. Just on Monday, I was up in Yorkshire for the announcement of an extra £3.9…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsYes, indeed. As I have mentioned, we are bringing forward orders, and the Secretary of State has written to the companies that finance train manufacturing and refurbishment to ask…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsI assure the hon. Member that the Secretary of State in particular has been meeting Alstom, and our officials and our director general meet Alstom, including with representatives.…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsI thank the hon. Member for his question, which I will answer on behalf of the Secretary of State. The Department works closely with rolling stock owners and train operators to…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsThe hon. Lady is correct: that is vital. The challenge, and it is a good challenge, is that we now have four manufacturers, and we need to help them with international orders.…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsI thank my hon. Friend, the Chair of the Select Committee, for the work he does—that evidence session was particularly pertinent for highlighting the matters he allows that…07 Dec 2023HANSARD Refurbishing Trains: ContractsMay I again thank my friend the hon. Member for Easington for raising this important issue? This is a matter of grave concern. The site has been operating in Derby for many years.…07 Dec 2023HANSARDDraft Strikes (Minimum Service Levels: Passenger Railway Services) Regulations 2023I will not give way. I have been very generous with my time. It has been suggested that the regulations will just cause rail workers to go off sick. Obviously, that is a…27 Nov 2023HANSARDDraft Strikes (Minimum Service Levels: Passenger Railway Services) Regulations 2023My hon. Friend has said it, and obviously he has the experience to do so. It is a fair point that needs to be considered. Through the regulations, we are taking a proportionate…27 Nov 2023HANSARDDraft Strikes (Minimum Service Levels: Passenger Railway Services) Regulations 2023The key is to ensure that those individuals have the right to go to work. It may be asked, “Why don’t you ban zero-hours contracts?”. I am pleased to hear that that is now Labour…27 Nov 2023HANSARDDraft Strikes (Minimum Service Levels: Passenger Railway Services) Regulations 2023Of course I pay tribute to everybody on the railway who takes safety so seriously, but it is fair to say that we had trade unions when we did not have such a safe railway, and we…27 Nov 2023