Oral Answers to Questions

Eric Ollerenshaw Excerpts

Thursday 27th January 2011 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Jones (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (Con)]

6. What plans he has for the reform of rail franchising; and if he will make a statement.

[Eric Ollerenshaw (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Con)]

11. What plans he has for reform of rail franchising; and if he will make a statement.

The Minister of State, Department for Transport (Mrs Theresa Villiers): On 19 January, the Government set out a new approach to franchising, taking account of the consultation that took place last summer. We expect the reforms to deliver a railway that is more responsive to passenger needs and provides better value for taxpayer investment.

[Mrs Villiers]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question. I have been impressed with the work done by him, the Harrogate chamber of commerce and Harrogate business interests to make the case for improved rail services between Harrogate and London. I would encourage them to continue that input when the consultation takes place on re-letting the east coast franchise. We will, of course, take those representations into account in our decisions on Harrogate services.

[Eric Ollerenshaw]

Given the announcement last week that the west coast main line franchise will be up for renewal, how soon does the Minister think we will see the extra carriages and, perhaps, the extra trains that we need to relieve the severe overcrowding on the line, particularly for my constituents in Lancaster?

[Mrs Villiers]

The Government will be funding 106 extra carriages on the west coast main line, which are due to come into operation with the new franchise. Some of those carriages will be available in a new train that will be available earlier, once its testing period has been completed. At that point, it will be available for Virgin to sub-lease, if ordinary commercial terms can be agreed.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Hammond]

The hon. Gentleman may know that the Department has introduced a programme of rolling monitoring of insurance, where anyone whose vehicle is uninsured now has to make what is, in effect, a statutory off-road notice declaration. The police will have access to the database and will be able to monitor, in real time, whether vehicles are insured or uninsured. That will give rise to a much more effective level of enforcement.

[Eric Ollerenshaw (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Con)]

T8. I know that the Minister is aware that Fleetwood has a railway line that has been redundant since the 1960s but which has most of its infrastructure intact. What hope can she offer my constituents that there may be a chance of reopening the line and providing much-needed regeneration to the town?

[Mrs Villiers]

I know that my hon. Friend has championed this cause, and I enjoyed my visit to the disused rail line. Programmes such as he outlines can confer significant local benefits, but it is primarily for the local authorities to identify the funding to restore railway lines and, importantly, to identify the funding for any ongoing subsidy that is needed. Local authorities may well wish to consider those options in order to enhance economic growth in their areas.

Transport (Investment)

Eric Ollerenshaw Excerpts

Tuesday 26th October 2010 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

Order. I will take the last five Members, because they have been waiting very patiently, but I ask them and the Secretary of State in reply please to be very brief.

[Eric Ollerenshaw (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Con)]

I want quickly to congratulate the Secretary of State on how much he has achieved for transport in these straitened economic times. In particular, I welcome his commitment to the Heysham port to M6 link road, which I assure him has the full support of Lancashire county council and Lancaster district chamber of commerce. Will he assure me that his Department will be as proactive as possible to ensure that we see a completion date for this scheme, which has been on the table for the past 30 years?

[Mr Hammond]

Yes.

Oral Answers to Questions

Eric Ollerenshaw Excerpts

Thursday 22nd July 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mrs May]

The figure that the hon. Lady has cited is not an official statistic; it is a figure that was derived from a piece of work that excluded analysis of significant parts of the Budget. That is why it is not a figure that I am going to recognise. Furthermore, if we had not taken those decisions in the Budget to deal with the deficit, and if we had adopted Labour’s plans to deal with it, that would have hit women even harder than our proposals. Under Labour’s proposals, expenditure on debt interest would have been higher than the expenditure on crucial public services, which are of particular importance to women.

[Eric Ollerenshaw (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Con)]

3. What discussions she has had with ministerial colleagues on increasing recruitment to the civil service from black, Asian and other minority ethnic people.

[The Minister for Equalities (Lynne Featherstone)]

Black, Asian and other minority ethnic representation in the civil service has been increasing steadily, and is broadly representative of the economically active population. We are committed to attracting the best talent from the widest possible pool of candidates. They have been targeted, and successful efforts have been made to render the civil service and the fast stream more diverse. My Cabinet Office colleagues are examining the range of BAME internships run by the Departments, and I expect to have discussions with them on the matter in due course.

[Eric Ollerenshaw]

We all welcome the Government’s announced policy on internships for under-represented minorities. How much progress has been made on that vital policy so far?