Louise Ellman
Main Page: Louise Ellman (Independent - Liverpool, Riverside)Department Debates - View all Louise Ellman's debates with the Department for Transport
(13 years, 10 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Mr Hammond
I understand my hon. Friend’s concern. Of course, there are far more stops and services than there were in 1908, but I am always delighted to meet her and other colleagues and would be happy to do so on this occasion.
Mrs Louise Ellman (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab/Co-op)
How will the Secretary of State secure better co-ordination, focusing on the interests of passengers rather than for ever dealing with the consequences of fragmentation?
Mr Hammond
The hon. Lady is hinting at the fact that, at the moment, far too much time and energy in the rail industry is spent on allocating blame for things that have happened rather than on working out how to prevent them from happening in future. We believe that aligning the financial interests of the train operators and the infrastructure operators, so that they both have a stake in positive outcomes for passengers, is the way forward. We will await Sir Roy McNulty’s final recommendations and set out our proposals for the reform of the industry on that basis.