Rail Performance

Nusrat Ghani Excerpts

Monday 11th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Louise Haigh]

I am grateful to the shadow Secretary of State for acknowledging that we provided the statement in advance, and I suggest that next time he reads it before he responds. He will have heard me say that public ownership is not a silver bullet, hence why we are setting out a substantial package of reforms. As I also mentioned, that includes substantial workforce reform, including developing training policies—that is one of the ways in which the recruitment of drivers has been really held back—and reducing reliance on rest day working agreements.

The shadow Minister might also want to check the latest statistics on TransPennine Express. It had the largest increase in punctuality of any operator contracted to my Department, including all those in private ownership. We have been clear that open access should continue where it does not abstract revenue from the overall network and where there is capacity. There have been good examples, such as Lumo and Grand Central, and we are very happy to continue working with them. We will publish a long-term rolling stock plan in due course.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call the Chair of the Transport Committee.

[Ruth Cadbury (Brentford and Isleworth) (Lab)]

The Transport Secretary’s statement is hugely welcome. Bringing privately owned train operating companies into public ownership as well as setting up GBR will inevitably add to her Department’s workload, so what preparations is she making to manage that additional workload?

[Louise Haigh]

I am grateful that my hon. Friend is concerned about my work-life balance—so am I. We are staffing up the operator of last resort, as it is currently known—we will shortly change its name, as it will no longer be the operator of last resort—and the Department has significantly increased its capability. Under the previous Administration, no one in government took responsibility for the running of the railways. We are taking a very deliberately different approach and, as passengers-in-chief, we will ensure that both the operator of last resort and the Department are sufficiently staffed up to manage the quick and successful transition of franchises into public ownership.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

[Mr Paul Kohler (Wimbledon) (LD)]

I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. I also welcome the new shadow Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Orpington (Gareth Bacon), to his position.

The Lib Dems welcome the Secretary of State’s statement that performance is improved, and commuters and businesses are relieved that industrial action has been curtailed. It is disappointing, however, that the unions were not required to agree any meaningful improvements to productivity as part of the settlement. Clearly, we are not yet out of the woods—or perhaps I should say the tunnel. Under the Conservatives, delays, cancellations and overcrowding became commonplace. Last year, more than 55,000 rush hour trains were either partly or fully cancelled—a 10% rise on the previous year, and the worst of any year since 2019. Although the latest news is welcome, there are many miles left to go on this journey. The Government’s policy of nationalisation is, as the Secretary of State herself concedes, no silver bullet. Earlier this year, the Office of Rail and Road found that four of the eight least reliable operators, with the highest cancellation rates, were public, while the three most reliable operators, with the lowest cancellation rates, were private.

I have three questions for the Secretary of State. First, what steps is she taking to ensure that the worst, rather than the best, private operators are nationalised first? Secondly, where a private operator’s performance is of a higher standard than that in the public sector, will she consider extending its contract? Finally, given the still shocking level of accessibility on much of the network, will she urgently provide an update on when the stalled Access for All programme will be back on track?

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[Louise Haigh]

Either the Rail Minister or I will of course seek to meet representatives of West Midlands Trains to address its performance.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call Select Committee member Laurence Turner.

[Laurence Turner (Birmingham Northfield) (Lab)]

The shadow Secretary of State said that we should pay attention to performance statistics. The figures that I have obtained from the Department show that over the past seven years, there was a 35% increase in temporary and emergency speed restrictions on the network. The Secretary of State has a difficult inheritance, but can she set out for us the work that she is doing to refocus the industry on the hard graft of understanding, maintaining and improving our crumbling infrastructure?

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[Louise Haigh]

The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. Chiltern was the worst-performing operator last year, in terms of the reduction in punctuality, which further makes the case for public ownership. The previous Government made lots of commitments, few of which were funded, but I will take that question away and determine where the rolling stock order is.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call Select Committee member Catherine Atkinson.

[Catherine Atkinson (Derby North) (Lab)]

I welcome the Secretary of State’s success in ending national industrial disputes as a first step to delivering better services for rail passengers. Does she agree that the establishment of Great British Railways in Derby represents a further positive step in getting Britain moving again? Can she update the House on the governance framework for shadow Great British Railways, and how it will work with stakeholders on functions such as producing a business plan?

[Louise Haigh]

I was delighted to be in Derby recently to confirm that the headquarters of Great British Railways will be in that rail city. I am also delighted that, as I say, Alstom is manufacturing the new Elizabeth line trains, as a consequence of funding awarded in the Budget. Shadow GBR is really important for engaging with stakeholders and, crucially, putting passengers at the heart of developing a new culture—and a new organisation, in Great British Railways. It has the expert chairing of Laura Shoaf, who brings substantial planning and transport experience from her time as chief executive of West Midlands combined authority.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call Select Committee member Rebecca Smith.

[Rebecca Smith (South West Devon) (Con)]

It has recently been brought to my attention that in Great Western Railway, which serves my constituency in Devon, drivers do not have contracts that ensure a seven-day-a-week service—the contracts do not include Sundays, so trains are regularly cancelled. In fact, four trains were cancelled yesterday, so one lady had been forced to catch the first train today instead. What plans does the Secretary of State have to equalise driver contracts under Great British Railways, to ensure that routes such as Paddington to Devon are fully staffed seven days a week, so that she can fulfil her promise to passengers?

[Louise Haigh]

The hon. Lady is absolutely right, and unfortunately that is the picture across too much of our railways. The workforce terms and conditions are simply not fit for purpose. Part of our inheritance is that we do not have a workforce that can deliver a modern and efficient railway. We are working with Great Western Railway to address that egregious issue, and we will come back to the House shortly to set out our progress.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call Select Committee member Dr Scott Arthur.

[Dr Scott Arthur (Edinburgh South West) (Lab)]

I thank the Secretary of State for her statement, and for the leadership that she is showing to get our railways back on track—sorry for the pun. I am pleased that she mentioned LNER and Lumo, which do a fantastic job of connecting Edinburgh and London, and of providing a stress-free alternative to flying. When she first took up her post, she was clear that she wanted HS2 to get a grip of costs. Does she feel vindicated, given the reports over the weekend of more than £100 million being spent on a single structure, despite some of those involved saying that they were not aware of the need for it?

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[Mr Richard Quigley (Isle of Wight West) (Lab)]

rose—

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

Richard Quigley, can you confirm that you were here at the beginning of the Secretary of State’s statement?

[Mr Quigley]

No, I was not.

[Louise Haigh]

I am conscious of the disruption that will be experienced by passengers coming from the south-west. We are putting in place plans so that trains can come into Euston rather than Paddington, but it is undeniable that there will be substantial disruption during the Old Oak Common works. I or the Rail Minister will be happy to meet colleagues who are affected.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

I call Richard Quigley—honesty goes a long way.

[Mr Quigley]

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker; I truly am grateful. I was going to say that my train was late, but that would not actually be true. [Laughter.]

Speaking of my right hon. Friend being a heroine, finding a solution to the Isle of Wight ferries issue would result in our erecting a bronze statue on the seafront in Cowes. Does she agree that the Conservatives’ failed experiment with rail privatisation has caused passengers misery and cost millions? What will she do to make things better?