Oral Answers to Questions

Katherine Fletcher Excerpts

Thursday 9th September 2021 Commons Chamber

The Secretary of State was asked—

[Katherine Fletcher (South Ribble) (Con)]

1. What steps he is taking to support the roll-out of electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

[Stephen Metcalfe (South Basildon and East Thurrock) (Con)]

4. What steps he is taking to support the roll-out of electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Rachel Maclean)]

It is very appropriate that my hon. Friend the Member for South Ribble (Katherine Fletcher) has asked this question because today is World EV Day. We are investing £1.3 billion in accelerating the roll-out of charging infrastructure over the next four years. On average, over 500 new chargers are added each month.

[Katherine Fletcher]

When I speak to the people of South Ribble, they are keen to do their bit to cut carbon emissions and also to get the benefits of cheaper travel from electric vehicles, but the thing that is constraining us and the problem we face is a lack of accessible charging points, not only commercially in the centre of town but in order to charge at home, across pavements and so on. Given that today is World EV Day, will my hon. Friend assure me that the Department will do everything it can to put the infrastructure in place to encourage more electric vehicle use?

Oral Answers to Questions

Katherine Fletcher Excerpts

Thursday 29th April 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rachel Maclean]

The hon. Lady will know that the whole House voted for the Heathrow plans, as she stated, but we will shortly be bringing forward our transport decarbonisation plans, which will discuss in full and in detail our ambitious plans to decarbonise the entire transport sector, including the aviation sector. She is right to say that we have increased our ambition on this front, and we are the only major leading nation that will set out such an ambitious set of plans to decarbonise the entire sector.

[Katherine Fletcher (South Ribble) (Con) [V]]

Hello from Lancashire, Mr Speaker. In South Ribble, there is quite a lot of interest in the Government’s recently announced £3 billion national bus strategy. Speaking to residents, many improvement suggestions have already been received. Joanne, for example, wants a west-east bus between Tarleton, the Hooles, Longton and getting into Leyland. Can my right hon. Friend share how he plans to ensure that the communities’ voices are heard during the planning of this strategy so that their needs are in the mix, and it is not just the ideas from the men in grey suits and the established industry?

National Bus Strategy: England

Katherine Fletcher Excerpts

Monday 15th March 2021 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

The hon. Lady is absolutely right. That is almost the fundamental point of the strategy. We recognise that London gets fantastic bus services, and we want the rest of the country to get some of it as well. The share is of £3 billion. I cannot give her the precise figures today, but I look forward to her local authority’s doing the work and coming back to me. By October, we should have numbers to talk about.

[Katherine Fletcher (South Ribble) (Con) [V]]

I am hugely excited about the opportunities that today’s announcement bring. However, when I have previously shared initiatives from the Department for Transport, the comments page underneath has said something along the lines of, “I’d settle for a bus from Hesketh Bank to Tarleton.” Will the Secretary of State give me and the people of South Ribble the confidence that communities, businesses, educational establishments and industry will be able to input their needs to transform Lancashire’s bus services?

[Grant Shapps]

That is absolutely right. I will say how I want this to work. I want Members in this House to have real input into it. Therefore, as a plan is being developed by a local authority, MPs should be on the authority’s shoulders, looking over and making sure that the new business park is included—or indeed anybody who lives in Hesketh Bank and Tarleton—to ensure that they get their services. It will be for local Members to ensure that that happens.