Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Heidi Alexander and Nick Timothy(6 days, 22 hours ago)
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Heidi Alexander
I would be very happy to ask the Rail Minister to meet my hon. Friend. I fully appreciate the importance of direct services to London, and we will make sure that we look at the detail of what has happened in this situation and see whether any mitigations can be put in place.
Nick Timothy (West Suffolk) (Con)
Communities near Cambridge, such as the towns and villages of West Suffolk, need better transport connections, especially given the new housing developments. The wider east needs the Ely-Haughley upgrade, and we need a dualled line from Cambridge to Newmarket and a new rail link to Haverhill. Will the Secretary of State meet me to discuss how developments and transport policies can be better aligned in the east of England?
Heidi Alexander
I would be happy to meet the hon. Gentleman to discuss these issues. I am aware of the significance of the Ely-Haughley junction improvements. It was not possible to fund that scheme in the spending review, but it is part of the longer-term pipeline that we are looking at, not least because of the important freight links to the port in Felixstowe that could be improved. I would be happy to have a further conversation on the wider issues.
Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate
Debate between Heidi Alexander and Nick Timothy(9 months, 1 week ago)
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Heidi Alexander
My hon. Friend is totally right. This is a critical issue. The guidance that we published before Christmas is vital, as is the grant we are giving to households.
Nick Timothy (West Suffolk) (Con)
It is not just the absurdity of fining firms for making the wrong cars, and insisting that is good for growth; it is that the national grid and local distribution networks do not have the capacity to cope with growing demand now, let alone if and when cars and central heating are electrified, as the Government promise, and all those data centres are built. Can the Secretary of State confirm that the connections queue stands at 756 GW and that only 0.54 GW was delivered in the past month, while the queue grew by 21.8 GW?