Road Safety and Active Travel to School

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd April 2025 Westminster Hall

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

To incentivise walking, wheeling and cycling, and to form habits, we need to invest in capital and revenue infrastructure, skills development and, above all, ambition—not least because half the number of girls as boys travel to school by bike. With Active Travel England in the heart of my constituency, I recognise the importance of that.

We need to ensure there is safe space around schools, as we have heard; that we slow traffic, as with Acomb primary school and Acomb Road; and that we stop the chaos outside schools, as with Our Lady Queen of Martyrs school on Hamilton Drive. We also need to ensure that school travel plans are active in driving the ambition that every family should be engaged in active travel. I ask the Minister to review that, and to encourage simple measures—as Chris Boardman says, we should use paint and plastic before the hard-wired infrastructure.

[Wera Hobhouse (in the Chair)]

I am sorry, but I will have to stop Back-Bench contributions here. Members have been incredibly good at sticking to a very tight time limit. I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 13th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mike Kane]

The right hon. Member raises an important point. The resilience of the UK aviation sector is important, and key to its success, so we will facilitate any discussions to make sure we are always on an improvement trajectory.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Access for disabled people was a condition of opening up planning for the York Central development. However, I hear that the condition will be bypassed, and that planning will go ahead without disabled access being put in place. That clearly impedes disabled people. Can we ensure that difficult engineering work is undertaken before planning permission is granted?

[Simon Lightwood]

The accessibility of all modes of transport is extremely important to this Government. I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend to discuss this matter further.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 9th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Mike Kane)]

Changes made during the pandemic crippled airport duty-free shopping. I will get the hon. Member a more detailed letter on the matter.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

York’s advanced digital and advanced rail cluster can really boost our economy with the innovations that it is bringing, as well as providing 5,500 jobs in York. Will the Secretary of State meet me to discuss how we can bring it into her strategy for developing the rail industry?

[Heidi Alexander]

I will. I know that my hon. Friend represents the proud railway city of York, as I represent the proud railway town of Swindon. I look forward to having that meeting with her.

Taxi Licensing: Deregulation Act 2015

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 21st October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Chris Vince]

I will carry on with this bit of my speech.

This situation erodes trust in industry at a time when we should champion local businesses. Instead, we are creating obstacles for them. How can I or anyone in this Chamber look our local taxi drivers in the eye and tell them that we are truly on their side? Right now, I cannot, but by addressing these issues head on, we can change that narrative.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. Does he agree that the Deregulation Act 2015 needs to be repealed? It is deeply damaging in a place like York, where we have a tourism industry, so we need it to be repealed.

[Chris Vince]

I agree—that is part of what I am talking about. We want to support our local taxi drivers.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 10th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Louise Haigh]

The hon. Member has outlined exactly the kind of issues that we seek to address through the public ownership reforms and the creation of Great British Railways. The Department is already working with operators that are in public ownership and those that are not yet, such as Southern, to ensure that the decisions that they make are properly joined up with Network Rail and that we can start driving improvements immediately.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

As a result of a failure in regulation, the cross-border taxi trade is undermining the high standards set by local taxi companies and black cabs. What is being done to improve regulation, and will the Minister meet me to discuss the situation in York?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Simon Lightwood)]

We are aware of concerns about the current legislative and regulatory framework and would be delighted to meet her to discuss that further.

Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 29th July 2024 Commons Chamber

[Louise Haigh]

My hon. Friend is exactly right, and that is what is at the heart of these proposals. This is an opportunity to genuinely reform our railways from top to bottom, to ensure that passengers and growing the railways are the only objectives that they should serve—not private operators, not shareholders, not the whims of the engineers that run Network Rail. This is a once in a generation opportunity to make sure that our public transport system serves the public, so it is not ideological. What was ideological was the previous Government sitting back and presiding over a broken system while passengers and the economy paid a heavy price. I know that the Tories have been trying to pretend that the last 14 years of failure have not happened, but they cannot deny that after 30 years of privatisation we find ourselves in a position where taxpayers are responsible for 50% of the rail industry’s income and underwrite almost every penny spent, while profits are siphoned off to shareholders.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I congratulate my right hon. Friend on her appointment as Secretary of State. I note that clause 2 of the Bill talks about the extension of the current contracts. Could she set out the circumstances in which that could occur, because we know that rail safety is best when track and train are brought together, as they would be under Great British Railways?

Victims of Road Traffic Offences: Criminal Justice System

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 30th January 2024 Westminster Hall

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Ms Nokes. I thank the hon. Member for North Devon (Selaine Saxby) for securing today’s debate, and my hon. Friend the Member for Leeds North East (Fabian Hamilton) for the incredible work he does on the APPG for cycling and walking. We have heard so powerfully today about why we need greater justice for vulnerable road users—for cyclists and pedestrians and for those who wheel and scoot.

The APPG report articulates where those changes need to be focused, and I trust that, in his response, the Minister will refer to the report’s 10 recommendations and to the opportunity to put in place a system of justice that addresses the huge inequality that vulnerable road users experience. In particular, the right to continue to drive needs to be examined in greater detail, because we know that disqualification is a major intervention that will change behaviours. That, together with sentencing, re-testing and an escalation of penalty, is long overdue.

I want to focus on speed limits, which other hon. Members have talked about today. I thank the York Cycle Campaign for its work on abiding by speed limits. In the entry and exit points of York, in particular, people accelerate beyond the speed limit. It cannot be beyond the mind of technology today to better audit, monitor and provide penalty for those who exceed the speed limit. However, across all urban areas, we need to consider whether 30 mph and 40 mph are appropriate speed limits. The Minister will be very familiar with the 20’s Plenty for Us campaign, and we do need to look at this issue, particularly where there are blind corners and steep hills, which can occlude a driver’s vision.

[Alexander Stafford (Rother Valley) (Con)]

The hon. Lady is making a very important point about speed limits. In my constituency, on Swinston Hill Road in Dinnington, we have an issue with speeding. The council conducted a speed watch to work out how fast drivers were going. Drivers were speeding, but the council’s response was that maybe the speed limit was too low and that it should be raised because there were no accidents. Does the hon. Lady understand the concerns of residents who report speeding, when the council says that, if there are no accidents, there is no problem? Speeding is always a problem.

[Rachael Maskell]

I agree, and we must ensure that we put safety first at every juncture.

I want to address the issue of creating zones around schools, nurseries and other areas where young people play, as well as around heavily pedestrianised areas, to ensure that there is a safety strategy in such locations. There are many schools across York where young people have to navigate dangerous roads, and 30 mph is not a safe speed for children. I urge the Minister to consider an integrated schools strategy, so we can deploy proper measures to keep children and young people safe when they walk, wheel, scoot or cycle to school. The work done in Manchester, which states that the infrastructure should be there for a 12-year-old to navigate, is really important, but we need to ensure that it is applied across the country, because it is clear that there is inequality at the moment.

Where we see repetition in a locality, or indeed even a single incident, there should be a duty on local authorities to ensure that proper signage and speed mitigation are put in place to highlight areas of risk and to ensure that junctions and other areas are safe for walkers and cyclists. I urge the Minister to look at that.

I draw Members’ attention to the work of the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety on speed limits and the opportunities for technology in this area. Its recommendations, too, are important, and I thank it for its work.

I also want to raise with the Minister the work undertaken by the Institute for Safe Autonomy at the University of York, in the light of the on-board technology that is available for vehicles, which can act as evidence in court cases. That could secure more convictions and ensure a chilling effect on poor driving.

The licensing of taxis is long overdue, and the Government have had a long time to implement the Law Commission’s report on it. We often see some of the worst driving behaviours in our city when licences have been granted in authorities other than our own. I really urge movement on that issue to ensure that licensing relates to the authority in which somebody is licensed to drive, and to bring greater safety for road users.

Finally, I want to draw attention to the work City of York Council is doing with its transport consultation. If we are serious about seeing an escalation of active travel and proper safety measures put in place, it is really important that every local authority has a proper integrated transport plan. That would benefit not only the environment and the economy, with all that that brings, but cyclists, walkers, wheelers and scooters, ensuring that their safety in the road space is acknowledged and made a priority.

Refurbishing Trains: Contracts

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 7th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Huw Merriman]

I thank my hon. Friend, the Chair of the Select Committee, for the work he does—that evidence session was particularly pertinent for highlighting the matters he allows that Committee to raise. I can assure him that the Secretary of State wrote to rolling stock owners in September to encourage them to discuss with train operators and manufacturers opportunities to ease short-term challenges in the supply chain, such as refurbishments or major overhauls. We recognise the issue, and have asked others to do their best to deliver on that.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I declare that I am a member of Unite the union, and met with trade union members yesterday. The urgency of this matter cannot be overstated—the clock is ticking, and those jobs will be consulted on in the very near future if contracts cannot be found. The Minister wrote in September, but what has he been doing over the past three months to bring forward contracts that will enable the plant to remain open?

[Huw Merriman]

As I have mentioned, we have written to ask rolling stock owners what more action they can take. Just on Monday, I was up in Yorkshire for the announcement of an extra £3.9 billion in funding for the TransPennine route upgrade. That also starts the tendering process for new rolling stock—29 new trains, with an option for another 26—and as I mentioned, we are looking for the tendering process for Southeastern, Chiltern and Northern to go forward as well, so orders are being put into the pipeline for train manufacturers.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 8th June 2023 Commons Chamber

[Jesse Norman]

In 2021, we asked National Highways to undertake a study looking at possible interventions on or around the M65 at Colne. That study focused on localised congestion pinch points on that road, which is owned and managed by Lancashire County Council. It concluded in 2022, and the findings were handed over to the council and Transport for the North. It is for them to decide what further action they may wish to take as a result, but I know they will, and they certainly should, attend closely to what my hon. Friend said.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. There is real frustration because the Secretary of State and the rail Minister will not talk and settle the dispute between the trade unions and the operators. No talks have been held since the beginning of the year. When I speak to the rail companies, they say they want to do a deal and they believe that there is a pathway to end the dispute. When I speak to the trade unions—ASLEF and RMT—they say the same. So why will he not get round the table and end the dispute?

[Mr Harper]

As I said, the table, which the hon. Lady refers to, has an offer on it. All it requires is for the RMT—[Interruption.] The hon. Member for Sheffield, Heeley (Louise Haigh) on the Front Bench says that they have not accepted it. The members of those unions—the members—have not been given the opportunity to vote on it. The deal is on the table. The union leaders should put it to their members and ask them what they think.

Rail Services

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 20th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Harper]

I think we should judge Avanti’s performance fairly. The hon. Gentleman is mashing periods together. Before December, I was quite clear that Avanti absolutely had to deliver an improved timetable—that did not start until December. Of course, as I said in response to previous questions, the first month or so of that was disrupted enormously by industrial action either in the train operating company or in Network Rail, or in both. Since Avanti brought it its new timetable, it has delivered 40% more services. Yes, it has not delivered sustained reductions in cancellations, but it has delivered reductions more recently.

There is no point in looking at the performance last summer and autumn, which I have accepted was terrible. There was a problem to fix, which is why Avanti needed to bring in its new timetable. Since it has done that, it has delivered improvements. Are they good enough? No, which is why I have extended it for a further six months only. Avanti is very clear that it has to deliver sustained performance improvement, and I judged that that was the best way to deliver improved performance for the hon. Gentleman’s constituents and those of other hon. Members.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The performance and service of York-based LNER is the best across the network. That service is under the operator of last resort. By contrast, TransPennine Express, which is operated by FirstGroup, is failing my constituents abysmally. Will the Secretary of State look at bringing TPE under the same public ownership as LNER, and draw on York’s advanced rail and digital rail cluster to make TPE an effective and efficient service?

[Mr Harper]

TPE’s contract expires on 28 May, not 23 May. I recognise what the hon. Lady says about the excellent skills that are available in York. On LNER, that franchise often delivered very good performance. The reasons why it ended up being brough under the control of the OLR were to do with financial performance —the operational performance was very good. On TPE, we are carefully considering the performance of the existing company and structure, and we will make a judgment about that. I have said that no option is off the table if TPE does not deliver improved services. I listened carefully to what she said, and I will bear it in mind when we make a decision.