Rail Infrastructure (Train Operating Companies)

Debate between Lord Grayling and Robert Neill

Tuesday 6th December 2016 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

Today’s announcement is predominantly about England, because, as the hon. Gentleman knows, the Welsh Government are taking the lead in designing the franchise. I know that they have sympathy with this view, because they are pathfinders at the moment in securing bids from integrated consortiums for the proposed Cardiff metro service, but I will discuss this with the Welsh Government, as I have regular conversations with them. I hope that they may want to build on some of the things we are seeking to do in England.

[Robert Neill (Bromley and Chislehurst) (Con)]

The Secretary of State’s decision to reintegrate train and track, where appropriate, is sensible. Does he accept, however, that my constituents will regard his failure to remove the London metro services from the wholly discredited Southeastern franchise as a complete cop-out and failure, and that it makes sense at all, as far as rail users in my constituency or I am concerned?

[Chris Grayling]

I know that my hon. Friend feels passionately about this, but I do not agree with him. We will have the opportunity, between London, my Department and Kent, to design an improved franchise for the future. What I had to decide was whether the benefits set out in the Mayor’s business plan, which did not involve increases in capacity on my hon. Friend’s local routes into London, and the incremental improvements that Transport for London claimed it might be able to deliver were really worth putting his railway line through the biggest restructuring since the 1920s. My judgment is that we can achieve the benefits that TfL is arguing for through partnership, rather than through massive reorganisation, and that is my aim.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Grayling and Robert Neill

Thursday 15th September 2016 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

Yes. This is on my desk right now and I recognise its importance. I am very pleased that over the summer the link to north America was kept in place. Good connectivity in Northern Ireland is, remains, and always will be very important.

[Robert Neill (Bromley and Chislehurst) (Con)]

On 16 July I wrote to the rail Minister requesting a meeting to discuss the daily failings that my constituents have at the hands of Southeastern Trains and Network Rail. Will he say yes to that meeting today?

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Grayling and Robert Neill

Thursday 14th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Robert Neill (Bromley and Chislehurst) (Con)]

Yesterday saw the launch in the terrace pavilion of Open Doors’ 2016 “World Watch” report on the persecution of Christians, which regrettably is growing and has reached the stage where Christians are now the most persecuted group. Will the Leader of the House welcome the work of Open Doors and ask for an update from our right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development on how we might implement its proposal that the UK use its position as a major aid donor as leverage in ensuring plurality and proper respect for faiths in aid-recipient countries?

[Chris Grayling]

I am happy to do both, and I think we should say very clearly as a Parliament and as a nation that the persecution of Christians around the world is to be abhorred. This is a world that should respect the freedom of individuals to follow their religion. No one should be persecuted for their religion. My hon. Friend is absolutely right that around the world, some Christian minorities are being persecuted for their religion. It is for this country as a beacon of liberal democracy to stand up for them—we should do that and we will.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Grayling and Robert Neill

Thursday 5th November 2015 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

The hon. Lady makes an important point. The Minister will be here next week, and I encourage her to make that point directly to him.

[Robert Neill (Bromley and Chislehurst) (Con)]

On 31 December, the Equitable Life payments scheme will close to new claimants. We have not yet had a chance to debate the scheme in this Parliament, although Members, on a cross-party basis, met victims of that scandal in the House on Tuesday, and my hon. Friend the Member for Harrow East (Bob Blackman) is attending the annual general meeting of the Equitable members action group today. May we have a debate on the scheme soon, in particular to make the case that once the number of claimants has been crystalised, on 31 December, we must ensure that any surplus funds are paid out to identified claimants, rather than returned, for example to the Treasury?

[Chris Grayling]

The Treasury has sought to broaden its support to Equitable members as much as possible, and it has operated in line with the recommendations of the ombudsman. I know that this remains a matter of concern to Members on both sides of the House. We have allocated a significant amount of time to the Backbench Business Committee, and my hon. Friend may wish to raise this issue in one of those debates.

Business of the House

Debate between Lord Grayling and Robert Neill

Thursday 2nd July 2015 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

Everyone does and should have access to the law, so to place a hurdle in front of them before they arrive is not the right thing to do. It is very much my hope that, if a case is vexatious, the judge taking an initial look at it will rule it out and not hear it because it has no grounding.

[Robert Neill (Bromley and Chislehurst) (Con)]

My constituents get excuses from Southeastern Trains that delays and cancellations are due to the wrong type of ice, the wrong type of leaves, the wrong type of rain and now the wrong type of heat. Given the amount of money that goes to these train operators, could we please have a debate in Government time about the dysfunctional nature of the London commuter train services and why, ironically, London Overground, which is run by the Mayor, seems remarkably free of such surprising obstacles?

[Chris Grayling]

I very much echo my hon. Friend’s point. Yes, it has been a hot week, but that is not an excuse for the train service to disintegrate. Both yesterday morning and this morning, the South West Trains service that I use to come in turned from an eight-coach train into a four-coach train, which was absolutely packed. Indeed, yesterday it could not even stop at all the stations on the way. My message to the train companies is to spot the weather forecast coming up and to try to make sure that they can maintain their services even when it is a bit challenging on the weather front.