International Travel

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Thursday 8th July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

My right hon. Friend is absolutely right to mention the case of, for example, a business traveller who might go from A to B to C. One of the things that is little noticed is that a test is up to day 2—it is not a day 2 test per se. It might be helpful, though, if I were to write to him in more detail about the application and how that would work under this new system with regard to, for example, somebody travelling for business to many different places.

Finally, I am pleased to tell him that on the gov.uk website, the methodology for the Joint Biosecurity Centre is already set out. It does include subsections of a number of different criteria that apply. I often hear people say, “X country has fewer cases than we do, so why aren’t they on the green list?” The answer is probably that they are not sequencing their genome, they are not uploading it to the GISAID internationally recognised format, and perhaps they are not vaccinating people at quite the rate that we have. There are many different factors, but they are all set out by the JBC.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

I thank the Secretary of State for his statement, and I suspend the House for a few minutes to make arrangements for the next business.

Britain’s Railways

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Thursday 20th May 2021 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

Well, there is a challenge. As I said, the strange thing about the May 2018 timetable change is that it attempted to make more paths available in order to use the track that we have better, but the problem was that no one was in charge, and we know what happened. The great thing about Great British Railways looking after all these different elements is that it will be able to use the track more intelligently. I do not know, but I very much hope that one day that might lead to a train direct to Bolton.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

I call Angela Crawley. Not here, so I call Martin Vickers.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con) [V]]

Unlike Labour Members, I welcome the Secretary of State’s focus on what works rather than just on ownership, but we should not lose sight of the fact that competition is a spur to improved services. Open access operators have provided services to towns that were not included in franchises. Can my right hon. Friend assure me that these services will continue? Paragraph 25 of the White Paper states:

“New open access services will also be explored where spare capacity exists.”

Can we be assured that the default position will be to do everything possible to ensure that we do not reduce existing services and that we extend and improve services? As chairman of the all-party rail group, I can tell my right hon. Friend that an invitation to address the group is already winging its way to him, and I hope he will be able to do so in the next few weeks.

[Grant Shapps]

Yes, absolutely—open access is something we really think is an important part of the structure. It provides the competition. It keeps everybody on their toes. These are often extremely popular services. As my hon. Friend rightly points out, we absolutely back them in paragraph 25 of the White Paper. Having visited the National Rail Museum in York on Tuesday this week, I cannot wait to bring my stories of looking round that museum to his group.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

Angela Crawley appears still not to be here, so we will go to Yvette Cooper.

[Yvette Cooper (Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford) (Lab) [V]]

The current system has been failing my constituency for far too long, so I urge the Secretary of State to make sure that this plan improves things and is a step forward. The five towns are less than 20 miles from the centre of Leeds. If we were that close to the centre of London, we would have many trains an hour into the city, yet Normanton has only one train an hour into Leeds; Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley are all underserved; and we need more trains to Sheffield, York and Hull. I have met Transport Ministers repeatedly on this, so will the Transport Secretary now guarantee that this new plan will mean more local trains for the five towns?

--- Later in debate ---

[Grant Shapps]

It is a pleasure to respond, on this last question, to somebody who has actually worked on the railways and understands these things. I feel for his franchise, because it has to deal with him and he will not take no for an answer—and quite right, too. He points out several things about this reform that are really important. The franchise boundaries, as he rightly describes them, cause too much disruption and fragmentation—that is the key thing that will end with Great British Railways bringing it all together and finally listening to the representatives of the people. I believe and have, I hope, strongly indicated through things such as the Beeching reversal fund that Members of Parliament in this place have an absolute right and duty to be involved in the way that services develop in their areas. I know that my hon. Friend and other Members throughout the House will appreciate that Great British Railways will be more responsive to them, as the rightful representatives of their constituents.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

I thank the Secretary of State for making the statement and suspend the House for three minutes to make arrangements for the next business.

Transport for the North: Funding

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Wednesday 17th March 2021 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

That is not really a point of order, but it is up to the Member who has the Adjournment debate to take a reasonable amount of time, and I have to say that I have seen Adjournment debates in which the Member in charge has taken considerably longer than the right hon. Lady. I think the Minister does have adequate time to reply.

[Andrew Stephenson]

I will always defer to your guidance, Madam Deputy Speaker. For the record, I was waiting behind the Speaker’s Chair for at least five minutes, but there was a Minister at the Dispatch Box and, due to social distancing, it would have been inappropriate for me to come into the Chamber and on to the Front Bench while the previous Minister was here.

At Prime Minister’s questions on 24 February, the right hon. Lady said:

“Is the 40% cut to Transport for the North’s budget part of the Prime Minister’s plans for levelling up the north?”

In response, the Prime Minister said:

“There has been no such cut, and we intend to invest massively in Northern Powerhouse Rail, and in railways in the north and across the entire country.”—[Official Report, 24 February 2021; Vol. 689, c. 911.]

Transport for the North became a statutory body in April 2018. I was proud to serve as a Government Whip on the statutory instrument Committee that oversaw the process at the time.

Let us first look at the budget that has been available to Transport for the North since it was established. Transport for the North has had a core funding grant of £10 million per year since it was established as a statutory body. That settlement has been used to support core operations, as well as to underpin Transport for the North’s medium-term financial strategy through the maintenance of reserves. The Department and Transport for the North have agreed a minimum reserve of £2 million.

However, this financial year, partly as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic, Transport for the North underspent its core grant and built up significant reserves. According to its own forecast, its reserves would have grown to an excessive £9.5 million if its funding had remained unchanged this year. Ministers therefore took the decision to adjust Transport for the North’s core settlement this year, allocating £7 million for the current financial year and £6 million for the next. That is a prudent and sensible use of taxpayers’ money that ensures that Transport for the North still has enough to continue to deliver on its statutory functions while making sure that it does not continue to build up unnecessarily large reserves.

To come to the crux of the argument, it is important to note that the core funding grant is just one of several funding streams that make up Transport for the North’s budget. During 2018-19—its first financial year as a statutory body—some £388,000 was available for the Rail North partnership grant. That has risen year on year, with £680,000 available this financial year and a further rise to more than £750,000 anticipated for the next financial.

Likewise, when Transport for the North was established as a statutory body, £15 million was made available for Northern Powerhouse Rail in 2018-19. Again, that amount has risen year on year, with £59 million available this year, rising to £67 million in the next financial year, subject to the usual agreement of programme activity with the Department, as co-client.

In the 2015 spending review, Transport for the North was allocated up to £150 million to support its integrated and smart travel programme. It has utilised only £24 million in the past five years to enable the roll-out of smart ticketing throughout the north. Additionally, it incurred development, business-case and other project costs of around £10 million, but was unable to produce a business case for its ambitious multi-modal projects that was acceptable to all transport operators in the north.

The multi-year funding for Transport for the North’s integrated and smart travel programme was always due to expire at the end of this financial year. We are considering how best to deliver more effectively the roll-out of smart ticketing to improve passenger services throughout the region.

What all that amounts to is that the Prime Minister was right in his assertion that there has been “no such cut”. Taking into account all the funding streams available to Transport for the North, its budget has not been reduced by 40%. To that end, impartial website Fullfact published a piece on 3 March, in reference to the 40% reduction quoted by the right hon. Lady. It stated:

“This much is being removed from Transport for the North’s core funding, though not from its total funding. It will be able to access some extra funding from other programmes to supplement its core funding.”

I am happy to provide even more clarity on those figures. First, the 40% reduction in Transport for the North’s core funding will not take place until the next financial year. Secondly, looking at its core funding for 2021-22, the Department has agreed that Transport for the North can charge £2.5 million of the costs that previously came from its core budget to the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme, significantly reducing the impact of the reduction in its core expenditure.

The right hon Lady again asked the Prime Minister, in a written question on 1 March, about Transport for the North’s funding settlement, and the Prime Minister responded promptly on 4 March that Transport for the North’s overall funding means that it will have access to over £70 million this coming financial year alone.

For the avoidance of doubt, let me quote what the Prime Minister said in response to the right hon. Lady:

“A reply will be sent in due course. Transport for the North’s overall funding means they will have access to over £70 million this coming financial year alone. We are building on the £29 billion we have invested in transport in the north since 2010 with: the Integrated Rail Plan bringing together HS2, Northern Powerhouse Rail, and our multi-billion-pound rail investment programme; our £5 billion investment into local bus and cycle links, including in the North; our £4.8 billion Levelling Up Fund which will benefit communities across the region; and our £4.2 billion intra-city transport fund, benefitting bus, train, and tram services across our 8 largest city regions. And at Budget, we reaffirmed our commitment to northern infrastructure, with: the launch of the UK Infrastructure Bank, headquartered in Leeds; a new government economic campus in Darlington; investment in offshore wind port infrastructure in Teesside and Humberside; and over £450 million in Towns Fund Deals for towns across the north—investing in infrastructure and culture from Middlesbrough to Bolton, to Rochdale and Scunthorpe.”

I think that more than clarifies and settles the matter of the adjustments to Transport for the North’s funding. The settlement is fair, reasonable and appropriate, and indeed Transport for the North will continue to receive more funding than any other sub-national transport body.

Lately, the subject of Transport for the North’s funding has too often been conflated with investment in northern transport and the Government’s commitment to levelling up more generally, and again I would like to set the record straight. To be clear, Transport for the North is not, and has never been, a delivery body. It is a strategic body, there to provide advice to the Government—something that it is perfectly able to do within its current funding settlement. Therefore, a reduction in Transport for the North’s core funding will not impact on the delivery of the vital infrastructure projects that the north needs. The Government are wholly committed to levelling up all parts of the country, including the north. Therefore, £29 billion has been invested across the north since 2010. There is still a long way to go, but we are on the right track.

I do not have time tonight to list the many schemes and investments that we are progressing across the north, but I will mention a few. The dualling of the A66 has seen its construction time scale halved by the Government’s Project Speed. The planned reopening of the Northumberland line to passenger services will better connect our communities in the north-east. We are embracing our ambition of a zero-carbon future with a planned hydrogen transport hub in the Tees Valley.

Last July, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced an initial £589 million, with more to follow, for the trans-Pennine route upgrade, delivering much-needed rail capacity and reliability between Leeds and Manchester. In addition, I am pleased that the right hon. Lady shares my joy at the new freeport being established on the Humber, alongside two other sites in the north, at Liverpool and Teesside. Furthermore, I am surprised she did not mention that the work on the improvement scheme for the A63 Castle Street in Hull is under way. She mentioned the incredibly beautiful bridge, to which many of her colleagues have paid tribute—the Murdoch’s Connection bridge—that is providing safe and convenient crossings for pedestrians and cyclists. The very fact that we are getting on with these schemes underlines our commitment to levelling up.

I could go on, but the point is that changing Transport for the North’s core funding settlement does not alter the Government’s commitment to the north or to levelling up. Our ambition is to deliver world-class infrastructure in the region and unlock the potential of the northern powerhouse. Opposition Members will continue, I am sure, to play games and try to score points, but this Government will not be distracted from building back better and delivering record investment to the region.

Question put and agreed to.

National Bus Strategy: England

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Monday 15th March 2021 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

Yes I will. I have no doubt that my hon. Friend will fight for his constituents and his area. By hooking up with the local authority and working with it, we will have a very good look at the investment strategy that it puts together to ensure that he enjoys much better services in the future than his constituents have in the past.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

I thank the Secretary of State for his statement. We will have a short suspension to make arrangements for the next business.

High Speed Rail (West Midlands – Crewe) Bill

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Ping Pong & Ping Pong: House of Commons
Tuesday 19th January 2021 Commons Chamber

[The Minister of State, Department for Transport (Andrew Stephenson)]

I beg to move, That this House agrees with Lords amendment 1.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

With this it will be convenient to discuss Lords amendments 2 to 12.

[Andrew Stephenson]

Let me say at the outset that the majority of these amendments are clarifications, corrections and updated references. When a Bill has had such a lengthy passage through these Houses as this one, it is perhaps amazing that there are so few amendments that need to be made. Let me say also that the Government accept all the amendments made by the other place to this Bill.

As you would expect, Madam Deputy Speaker, I will provide some comment on the more substantial amendments, but before I do so, I would like to thank the other place for its careful scrutiny of this Bill. In particular, I thank my noble Friend Baroness Vere of Norbiton for her very great skill and diligence in steering this Bill through the other place. I also wish to extend especial thanks to Lord Hope of Craighead and his Committee for their careful and considered approach to the petitions against the Bill in the other place and for the way they handled their processes during the global pandemic.

Turning to the amendments, Lords amendment 2 introduces a requirement on the nominated undertaker to provide and publish annual reports on the impact of the construction of the High Speed 2 project on ancient woodland. This is a scheme-wide amendment: it applies not just to phase 2a of HS2, but to all phases, including those that the House has not yet considered. The requirement in this amendment to report is about ancient woodland, but I have also committed to wider environmental reporting on the impacts of HS2. I look forward to the first of these environmental reports being published, and I am absolutely committed to holding HS2 Ltd to account on environmental matters.

Lords amendment 3 introduces a new requirement on the Government to undertake the consultation prior to 1 May 2021. This consultation is to be for the people of Shropshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire, and it is to seek views on various types of impacts from the HS2 works. The Government opposed this amendment in the other place, but that was on the basis that it was deemed unnecessary. There has already been considerable consultation with the people of Shropshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire. Nevertheless, I think that accepting this amendment is the right thing to do. As the Minister for HS2, I have been charged with resetting the relationship between the HS2 project and local communities. I have worked continuously with colleagues across the House who represent communities along the line of route. I am listening, and I will not stand in the way of the opportunity to listen more through further consultation. I want to reassure the House that I am taking action on what I hear, where it is needed. Further, I will do all I can to ensure that officials and those working on the project for HS2 Ltd put any consultation responses to the best possible use.

I am acutely aware of the strength of feeling in the affected communities, and I am therefore mindful of the motivation and the sentiments of those who supported and voted for this amendment in the other place. As I have mentioned, extensive consultation has already been undertaken. It is crucial, though, that we remember that local communities are at the heart of this project. HS2 is a massive infrastructure project from which the whole nation will benefit, but there are those who will have to bear a burden for that to happen.

I cannot move on without mentioning that there is a price tag of around £350,000 attached to the consultation. However, the costs of running a consultation are minor compared with the costs of delaying the Bill and of not listening to those who are directly affected by the impacts of these works. Let me therefore be very clear about consultation and engagement. The passing of this Bill does not mean the end of engagement with local communities. Indeed, it is only the beginning of a renewed effort to try to mitigate the impacts of the HS2 works on them. Therefore, while there has already been extensive consultation, I see no harm in there being even more.

The last amendment to which I wish to draw the House’s attention is Lords amendment 5. It simply clarifies when a new road constructed under the powers in the Bill becomes specifically a public highway, and when a temporary highway ceases to be a public highway. This clarifies the position for local authorities and has been highlighted as necessary through learning the lessons from phase 1. The remainder of the Lords amendments—amendments 1 and 4, and 6 to 12—delete references to some specific phase 1 works that have been made obsolete by a Transport and Works Act 1992 order, delete references made obsolete by the repeal of some local Acts and update other references in relation to the Communications Act 2003.

The Bill has already taken far longer to go through Parliament than was anticipated when the legislation was introduced in July 2017. I do not want to delay it further today. I want this section of the railway to be built so that we can hasten the benefits of HS2 to the north as soon as possible and, given all that I have said, I urge the House to agree to the Lords amendments.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Before I call the shadow Minister, I should say that there will be a three-minute time limit on Back Benchers, because we have only an hour for this debate. I remind hon. Members that when a speaking limit is in effect for Back Benchers, a countdown clock will be visible on the screens of hon. Members participating virtually and on the screens in the Chamber. For hon. Members participating physically in the Chamber, the usual clock in the Chamber will operate.

[Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Slough) (Lab)]

I rise to support the Bill and all the Lords amendments. I thank the Minister for his acceptance of Labour amendments, particularly Lords amendment 3, and for his acknowledgement that the Bill did not go far enough to ensure that local voices were heard. This progress would not have been possible without the excellent work of my Labour colleagues in the other place, including Lord Rosser and Lord Tunnicliffe. I appreciate the hard work that has been done to get us to these final stages since the Bill’s introduction to the House in July 2017. As I am left holding the baton, it falls to me to place on record my immense gratitude to all those who have contributed so far, including House staff, Members’ staff and officials at the Department for Transport. I would also like to thank my predecessors, my hon. Friends the Members for Middlesbrough (Andy McDonald) and for York Central (Rachael Maskell), for their work in previous years to help improve transport infrastructure.

While I am pleased that we are making progress today, I am deeply concerned about the Government’s approach and commitment to High Speed 2. Yet again, it seems the Government are overspending and underdelivering. They repeat ad nauseam about “levelling up” the north, but their continuing refusal to commit to delivering HS2 in full, including the phase 2b leg to Leeds, and their 40% budget cut to Transport for the North is the exact opposite of levelling up. I sincerely hope that cities such as Leeds are not going to miss out on the benefits of HS2 due to the Government’s failure to get a grip of ballooning costs.

Our northern towns and cities deserve better from the Government, so perhaps the Minister will make the commitment today that HS2 will go all the way to Leeds. I am happy to give way to the Minister if he wants to make that commitment now. That is disappointing, because high-speed rail projects deserve and require long-term and sustained commitment from Government to succeed.

Right now, we are seeing a complete absence in Government support for HS1 and Eurostar. What message does that send about the Government’s commitment to high-speed rail? For this project to be as successful as it can be, we need the Government’s full commitment to control the exploding costs of the project, commit to the stage 2b eastern leg to Leeds, minimise the environmental impact from construction and ensure public consultation.

Lords Amendment 3 addresses one of those main concerns—local consultation. The section of the line that we are considering today stretches from Fradley Wood and ends at Crewe in Cheshire, largely following the Staffordshire-Shropshire border. Residents of those local areas will have their daily lives impacted by the ensuing construction, yet many will see no material transport benefit. Under-investment in transport in those three counties brought about by a decade of underfunding and austerity means links to the HS2 line are simply insufficient. Time and again, the residents of Staffordshire, Shropshire and Cheshire are promised investment from the Government, but they have consistently failed to deliver.

Oswestry, a town in Shropshire, has a population of almost 20,000, yet no train station. That is not an isolated example. Labour’s amendment will minimise disruption from the project and make sure that all three counties benefit by launching a consultation with the good people who know the needs of these counties best—local residents.

Consultation thus far has been poor, yet it was a key promise from the Government and from HS2. Many have voiced their concerns. For example, in the village of Woore in Shropshire, members of the local parish council have repeatedly been told that their point of contact has changed. Just recently, they have been transferred to their fifth official. On an issue that will impact their daily lives for years, that is simply unacceptable.

Many other residents have been frustrated and are left feeling ignored by Ministers and HS2 when they refuse to meet them. How does avoiding proper local engagement assist with development and investment? I am pleased that the Government have finally committed to enhance consultation and to bring any findings to this House. Residents need action, not more warm words, as we have seen with other aspects of the Bill.

Lords amendment 2 concerns ancient woodland. We all know that this project must minimise negative implications for our natural environment, including ancient woodlands. HS2 will deliver increased rail capacity to grow freight and passenger usage, helping to address our climate emergency. For this project not to be held to account on its environmental commitments would be a failure of leadership. After all, while rail accounts for 10% of all passenger miles, it contributes only around 1% of all greenhouse gas emissions from transport. Rail is integral to reaching net zero.

Ensuring rail is more accessible, affordable and sustainable should be a huge part of HS2 and I hope Ministers remain mindful of that. While the Government claim that they want to level up transport, action has yet to be seen. With one of the worst regional inequalities in the developed world, which has only been exacerbated by a global pandemic, levelling up in the north and midlands is more important than ever. Local people must be heard and Government promises must be delivered.

Public Passenger Transport

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Tuesday 16th June 2020 Commons Chamber

[Ian Paisley (North Antrim) (DUP)]

Does the hon. Gentleman agree that the best way for the Government to address those matters is urgently to introduce a national bus strategy, which would put in place a hydrogen technology programme that would allow the development of a new bus building programme that would be totally free of a carbon footprint?

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. I am anxious that we stick to the substance of the regulations. Matt Rodda.

[Matt Rodda]

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention. I am going to try to cover the environment and other forms of innovation later in my speech.

Ministers are now trying to find ways to address the need to grow bus use, and the regulations address one small aspect of that, which is to allow greater sharing of bus data on timetables, fares, reliability and, indeed, the location of buses in real time. The Department hopes that making more information available to app developers will lead to more information about bus services being made available to the public, which in turn will increase passenger numbers. There are hopes that those measures could lead to a growth of about 2% in bus use, based on the effect of the policy in London.

I would, however, add a note of caution. First, I would ask the Minister to reassure the House that the Government’s intention is not to allow disruptive businesses like Uber to try unfairly to entice passengers away from bus services, which could risk undermining some routes, including those that are a lifeline for older people and many who are vulnerable. I hope that she will address that point when she sums up and offer specific reassurance. Secondly, I urge her to regard the measure as one in a series which, I hope, will support our bus services and allow them to grow, both now and in future.

Going forward, I hope that the Government will offer the same level of interest and support for a series of measures that have been shown to increase bus use and improve services. One of the best known is allowing councils to regulate services, which has been associated with much greater bus use in London, where there is a dramatically different picture of bus patronage. Will the Minister look at that again and allow all councils to explore that option, not just those with elected Mayors?

Another measure that is strongly associated with growing bus use is allowing councils to run their own bus companies, which used to be common in both Labour and Conservative-controlled local authorities. Council-owned companies in my own town of Reading and in Nottingham have experienced strong growth in bus use for many years—something that, outside London, is almost unique in England. Municipal buses offer low fares, frequent services and modern vehicles that are popular in those communities, and I invite the Minister to come to Reading. [Interruption.] I understand, Madam Deputy Speaker, and I will proceed rapidly through the rest of my speech.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. I simply want to make sure that the hon. Gentleman is addressing the regulations.

[Matt Rodda]

I will come back to them. This is part of the wider picture of the need for investment as a whole.

There are a range of other measures that I hope Ministers will reconsider, along with the regulations. For example, that could include more bus lanes and other bus priority measures to ensure more reliable services on busy roads and smarter support for innovation, which the hon. Member for North Antrim (Ian Paisley) mentioned, including electrification of buses. The Government’s current scheme is welcome, but it could be improved, and I look forward to speaking to the Minister about that.

I hope that Ministers will look at the link between transport and new housing, and do more to develop brownfield sites and other ways of bringing housing close to public transport routes, which will increase bus patronage and protect the environment. Allowing more investment and such innovation measures would offer the prospect of significant growth in bus use, leading to real environmental and social benefits, far beyond the potential benefits of the app.

To sum up, we are not calling for a vote on these regulations for the reasons I stated earlier. I thank colleagues across the House for their support for bus workers and bus services. I hope the Minister will respond to the risk that these measures could be misused and that the Government will now carry out a wider review of their support for buses, to allow councils more powers to regulate and to provide better services, which have the potential to allow far greater bus use in the future.

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. I just want to emphasise again that it is important when looking at regulations that we actually address the regulations, rather than having a wider debate—and I am sure Tim Farron will do just that.

[Tim Farron (Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)]

I am very grateful, Madam Deputy Speaker.

I support the spirit of these regulations. We must have equity of access to public transport across the country, and the collection of data to build an accurate picture of services is an essential part of that. However, I must warn the Minister that she will have a hard task collecting data on bus services in many towns and villages in Cumbria, because on most days there aren’t any, or at least it is so far that it will be a very short job and hardly worth the journey—which, in case I have not already made myself clear, she would not be able to make by bus.

I acknowledge that the Government have gone some way towards recognising the crisis in bus services, such as by laying these regulations, and indeed earlier this year there was an announcement of additional funding and the unveiling of a national bus strategy, of which I am sure this forms a key part. But the new funding turned out to be peanuts, and while having a strategy is definitely better than not having a strategy, it was still a far cry from the claims of the press release and light years off providing the solutions needed in communities like ours, where we would like these regulations to apply in practice.

So, to be clear, the whole of Cumbria received a total of £383,887, which, split roughly six ways between six constituencies, means about £65,000 for my constituency. My constituency could contain geographically every single one of the 73 constituencies in Greater London, and London—where these regulations will definitely apply —sees an annual subsidy to its public transport of around £700 million a year. And we must not forget that our £65,000—just less than a thousandth of 1% of the London subsidy—is just a one-off, and a one-off will not do.

Ministers surely know that research shows that in order for a community to trust a bus service enough to rely on it as part of their regular routines—enough to use it, basically—that service needs to be functioning reliably and affordably for two to three years. I am sure that the data collected as a consequence of this regulation will show that and prove it, but we know it already.

So this short-term puddle of cash does not even wet the feet of the problem. We will find a way of spending it wisely, and we are not ungrateful, but as we dare to hope for a time beyond the covid crisis, people in my communities want to believe that we have not sacrificed so much, endured such hardship and suffered such shattering loss just to go back to how things were beforehand.

The mission must be to build back better, and that must include a refusal to leave communities behind. Rural, more isolated communities such as ours in Cumbria are at risk. Those communities are also often older, and while the majority of people, even in their 80s and beyond, will make some use of the technology we are talking about here, a higher proportion than in other age groups will not, and they are the people I am most concerned about in terms of the application of these regulations.

The average age of the population in South Lakeland is 10 years above the national average. It cannot be right that we forget the generation that has borne the brunt of this virus, yet we will do that if we acquiesce over the isolation that so many of them endure. Many I know have found themselves alone and disconnected in their later years, with the loss of bus services leaving them stranded in places that are utterly beautiful but utterly isolated. Many in these towns and villages rely on buses for the basic tasks of daily life—shopping, going to the doctors, making appointments, seeing friends or getting to work. Buses, when they exist, provide those people with the ability to look after themselves, be independent, protect their physical and mental health, and stave off the loneliness that isolation can bring. Technology can help to underpin that, but only if there is a service that it can be underpinned by.

There is no doubt that more of us have become acquainted with isolation over the last few months, but what is someone who lives in a small village and is unable to drive supposed to do if their one transport link is removed? At the same time, they witness the closure of accessible services as a consequence of the technology that is available in other parts of the economy. With few neighbours and fewer local services, the loss of buses constitutes the loss of connection, which risks leaving many more people even more isolated and vulnerable.

Building back better must mean that we learn from the improvement in air quality and the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions throughout this time, and public transport is key to preventing a return to pre-covid carbon emissions. Bus services will be central to that, as part of an integrated public transport system. That is why I continue to urge the Minister to double the capacity of the Lakes line by introducing a passing loop, as well as electrifying the line to significantly reduce its carbon footprint.

Many of us are excited for a time when lockdown has eased and we are able to see friends and family and visit the shops without unnecessary restrictions and caution. But the Government must recognise that the end of the lockdown will not bring that relief to everyone. In fact, for many isolated people in Cumbria, the official lockdown has not looked very different from the growing isolation that they have suffered due to a lack of services and transport links. In the 10 years between 2008 and 2018, the north-west lost 888 separate, distinct services, and that does not include the services we have lost in the last couple of years. We have not taken this lying down. We would love those services to be traced by an app and part of a technological solution, but as I say, there is no point having the technological solution if there is no bus service to underpin it.

It is not only the elderly in our communities who suffer from reduced bus services. Young people’s access to public transport is also under threat. Free school transport is provided for young people up to sixth-form age, but after that, the support is not available. It makes no sense for the Government to demand that young people carry on in education until 18 and then deny them the ability to afford to do so—a generation that clearly is technologically competent and able to make use of the apps we are talking about. In places like Sedbergh and Coniston, it is often impossible to gain access to sixth-form provision at schools or colleges by public transport. That is why, alongside these regulations, there needs to be a statutory responsibility for local authorities to guarantee home-to-school transport for 16 to 18-year-old students, in the same way there is for under-16s.

There must also be buses available to deliver that transport in the first place. In many of our towns and villages, if the Minister did agree to subsidise sixth-form bus travel alongside this technological innovation, there just are not any services to be subsidised. That has been emphasised during the covid crisis, as many families with free school meal vouchers have not been able to use them because the vouchers are not for the local supermarket in their town—

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. The hon. Gentleman is going way off the scope of the regulations. If we are discussing regulations, that is what we are discussing. We cannot not have a general speech about everything that is happening in his constituency, as important as that is. This debate is about the regulations, and I urge him to return to them ASAP.

[Tim Farron]

I will do so instantly. I make the point, though, that the whole point of having the technology that is rightly rolled out through this statutory instrument is that it should apply to services that exist, not imaginary ones that we wish existed. My community is suffering under covid like anywhere else, but the hospitality and tourism industry is vital to us. We are the second biggest visitor destination after London, and yet our public transport infrastructure means that this instrument may as well not exist for many of the communities that I represent. While I support the regulations and will not oppose them, I want to send the Government the message that they should ensure that there are sufficient services in rural communities like mine, so that these applications actually have some application in a county like Cumbria.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

I call the Minister, and I ask her to address the points raised about the regulations.

Income tax (charge)

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Tuesday 17th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Ian Levy (Blyth Valley) (Con)]

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I give my sincere sympathy to anyone affected by the coronavirus.

It is with immense pride that I take my place in the Chamber and make my maiden speech as the first Conservative Member of Parliament for Blyth Valley since the seat was created in 1950. I pay tribute to my predecessor, Ronnie Campbell, who began serving Blyth Valley in Parliament in 1987. While we had many political differences, he sought to represent the people of Blyth well, and I am honoured to take over that role. It is a remarkable area and I will do all that I can to ensure that its people and their concerns and aspirations are heard here in Westminster.

Blyth is, of course, the main town, which gives its name to the constituency. My family have farmed the land there for generations, and Blyth is part of my DNA. It is a town steeped in history, but one that is dynamic and forward looking. It was a submarine port during both world wars; the place where the world’s first purpose-built aircraft carrier, the Ark Royal, was launched in 1915; and, not forgetting, the home of Blyth Spartans football club. I am so proud to wear their tie today. Built on coalmining and shipbuilding, Blyth is now at the forefront of developing renewable energy technologies. The port of Blyth will continue to play an important role in trade after Brexit.

Cramlington, also in my constituency, is the former home of the No. 36 Defence Squadron, which protected the north of England during the first world war, and one of the new towns that were built across the UK in the 1960s. This comparatively young town has a fantastic community spirit and residents have made their mark in so many areas, including sports, the arts and industry. I particularly enjoyed a visit to the Blagdon amateur dramatic society panto earlier this year—hon. Members are supposed to say, “Oh no you didn’t!” I was very impressed by the talents of that group of young people.

A number of villages, including Holywell, New Hartley, Seghill, Seaton Sluice and Seaton Delaval are also found in the area, which is more generally known as Seaton valley. With its beautiful coastal scenes and stunning countryside, Seaton valley illustrates why Northumberland is one of the most beautiful places in the north not just to live but to visit. Home to Arrighi’s café since 1925—without doubt, it sells the best ice cream in the UK, at least according to my wife, who visits regularly on Sundays—it is also the birthplace of Captain William Smith, who discovered Antarctica on a worldwide voyage on his Blyth-built ship, The Williams.

I started my working life in Blyth market when I was 13. Leaving school at 16, I worked for the council as a gravedigger. Back then, we had to dig the graves by hand; there were no machines to do the job. When I was 21, the family suffered a major setback: my dad was knocked off his motorbike by a hit-and-run driver, and never walked again. He became severely disabled. With my brother and sister both away from home, I provided support to both my parents at this relatively young age. That made me acutely aware of the need to support carers and of the challenges faced by both carers and the disabled people they look after. I eventually became a mental health nursing assistant and worked for the NHS—a role I had and loved for over 20 years.

My political journey began in 2016, when I became fed up with the state of my home town and some of the long-running problems that he area faced. After many months of my complaining, my long-suffering wife Maureen told me, “Ian—shut up or do something about it!” Recognising that I needed to act if I wanted to improve things, I wrote to the then Prime Minister David Cameron, joined the Conservative party and started working for what I believed would be a better future for Blyth Valley. Looking back at my journey now, I am honoured and proud—as well as mildly surprised—to find myself representing the area I call home down here in Westminster.

I give my sincerest thanks to all those who helped and supported me—from my agent Richard Wearmouth, my family, my friends and my NHS colleagues at Willow View, where I worked for many years, to the people who helped both during my campaign and since. I believe that my election proves that the Conservative party is one of real opportunity: it does not matter if you are the Eton-educated son of an earl, a council gravedigger or a nursing assistant with the NHS—if you have a passion for improving things for people, then you are welcomed with both arms.

The people of Blyth Valley voted for change in December 2019. They share my ambition to energise the town centre through the future high streets fund and a Blyth town deal and to connect our towns and communities with a new rail link and an improved road network. They want to support our industries and ensure that our children in Blyth Valley have the skills to secure employment in a thriving local business and they want to see a revolution in green technology. The people of Blyth Valley will rise to the challenges and opportunities that our departure from the EU—and that is what they voted for—will bring. For those reasons, I am proud to support this Budget: a Budget that recognises our country’s priorities and gives communities such as Blyth Valley the opportunity to thrive as we strive to make our way as world leaders of the future.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

It is a pleasure to call Ian Byrne to make his maiden speech.

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[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

It is a pleasure to call Mark Logan to make his maiden speech.

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

It is a pleasure to call Sarah Dines to make her maiden speech.

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[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. I remind the House that if Members do not stick to seven minutes, I will have to impose a time limit, which might be even shorter.

Airport Expansion

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Monday 2nd March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. We have another half an hour to go on this urgent question, so I plead for short questions and brief answers.

[Ms Nusrat Ghani (Wealden) (Con)]

I welcome my hon. Friend to her new position. It is a difficult job, and she is doing it very well at the Dispatch Box. A total of 40% of all exports outside the EU are dealt with at Heathrow airport. Any future trade deals depend on Heathrow expanding. Given that the UK Civil Aviation Authority already has a net-zero policy, does my hon. Friend agree that it is compatible for Heathrow airport to expand and for us to meet our net-zero targets?

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. Before I call the hon. Member for Hampstead and Kilburn (Tulip Siddiq) to ask her urgent question, it may be helpful to say that Mr Speaker has been advised that there will be a statement in the House tomorrow on coronavirus. This urgent question is very narrow, and relates only to the matter of prisoners held abroad.

Transport

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Wednesday 5th February 2020 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

I inform the House that Mr Speaker has not selected the amendment.

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[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. Colleagues will be able to see that a large number of people want to speak in the debate, so after the SNP spokesperson there will be an immediate time limit of six minutes.

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[Jeremy Wright]

I do. We should use the pause that the Secretary of State has sensibly ordered to develop a cheaper, less environmentally damaging high-speed rail network—perhaps one that lays additional track along existing transport corridors. With the money that we can save, we can invest in more of the transport projects that are mentioned in this debate while still investing in high-speed rail. To my mind, that would be a better strategic balance in transport policy.

I recognise that going back to the drawing board on high-speed rail will cause a delay to its coming into operation, but as my hon. Friend rightly says there are alternatives that have already been partially developed. Let us recall that only last year we were told that phase 1 of HS2 would, in any event, be delayed by at least two years and that phase 2 would be delayed by at least three years. High-speed rail will change our transport future for generations to come. It is too important to get wrong, and we can do better than HS2.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

It is a great pleasure to call Tahir Ali to make his maiden speech.

--- Later in debate ---

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. I am afraid that after the next speaker, the time limit will go down to five minutes, but it may have to be reduced quite quickly after that.

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[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. In an attempt to get everybody in, the time limit will go down to four minutes after the next speaker.

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[Munira Wilson (Twickenham) (LD)]

I thank the Labour Front-Bench team for moving this motion, and I welcome the unanimity across the Chamber, and the growing sense of urgency among the public, on taking tougher action on the climate emergency. The question arises as to whether the political rhetoric matches the reality in terms of policy and action.

So the two areas I wish to focus on briefly are rail and aviation. The motion calls for a cut in rail fares while the Government fix the mess that is the railways. Sorting out that mess has to start with the travesty of a “service”—if we can even call it that—that is South Western Railway. SWR dominates my email inbox and my Twitter feed. Commuters in my constituency are reliant on SWR and they are at their wits’ end, as not a day goes by without problems: lost income; lost working hours; lost time with loved ones; missed medical appointments; and just the general stress of not being able to get a rail service that is not constantly delayed or cancelled. This is just not acceptable. Those who live on the Shepperton line, which serves Hampton, are disproportionately affected, because it is a branch service, which is often cut. On other lines, such as the Teddington loop, there are regularly skips of stations when trains are delayed. Residents are telling me that as a matter of course they are driving part of their journey, which is not helping to cut emissions. All that is coupled with the 27-day strikes we saw in December, where there was no proper compensation, and the financial situation the company finds itself in. As the Secretary of State has said, the situation is unsustainable. I have written to him to ask for a meeting to discuss this matter, and I hope he will get back to me, granting me and other colleagues a meeting to discuss this important issue.

We need to do much more to expand our railways if we are to tempt people out of their cars and away from domestic flights, in order to reduce emissions. So I particularly welcome the motion’s call to bring aviation emissions within the UK’s climate targets. It is therefore somewhat surprising—no, negligent—that neither this Opposition motion, nor anything we have heard from those on the Government Benches today calls for the cancellation of a third runway at Heathrow.

I am disappointed that the amendment that I tabled with Liberal Democrat colleagues has not been selected for debate. Heathrow is the UK’s biggest single source of carbon emissions, and a third runway would increase carbon emissions by up to 9 million tonnes, making achieving net zero significantly harder. Indeed, the Committee on Climate Change said in 2016 that the construction of a third runway might break the Government’s own climate change laws. How can the Conservatives or Labour be serious about their commitment to tackle climate change unless they join my Liberal Democrat colleagues and me in calling very clearly for a third runway to be cancelled?

Heathrow expansion is projected to increase the number of flights by 300,000 annually. My constituents and many other people across south-west London already have their lives blighted by noise and air pollution, and over half a million people in the area surrounding Heathrow suffer noise levels above World Health Organisation standards. There is air pollution from surface transport, as well as particulates from flights, which go well beyond the airport boundary, despite the claims of Heathrow and, indeed, the Department for Transport. According to some studies, particulates travel up to 16 to 22 km downwind.



The Prime Minister does not even have to keep his promise of lying down in front of the bulldozers to stop a third runway. He has the power to cancel it at the stroke of a pen, and it is time that Labour came off the fence. Its spokesperson suggested that it might be shifting its policy. Heathrow expansion is bad for climate, bad for our health and wellbeing, and—

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. I call Jack Brereton.

High Speed Rail (West Midlands - Crewe) Bill

Rosie Winterton Excerpts

Report stage & 3rd reading & 3rd reading: House of Commons & Report stage: House of Commons
Monday 15th July 2019 Commons Chamber

[Ms Ghani]

I completely understand my right hon. Friend’s frustration with the impact that the build is having on his constituency, but I am sure that he and his council would agree that this is better done sooner rather than later. I am more than happy to sit down with him to go through the lorry movements in his constituency.

On new clause 5, I assure my hon. Friend the Member for Eddisbury that non-disclosure agreements are used for good reason, and not for any underhand purposes. I hope that when I list some of the good reasons for their use, she will understand—[Interruption.]

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. The Minister is trying to address points made in the debate, so it would be appreciated if we could listen to what the Minister is saying; there is a lot of chatter.

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19:49

Division 434

Ayes: 217

---

Labour: 189
Conservative: 12
Liberal Democrat: 7
Independent: 6
Plaid Cymru: 2

Noes: 246

---

Conservative: 239
Democratic Unionist Party: 6
Independent: 1

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Consideration completed. I will now suspend the House for no more than 10 minutes in order to make a decision about certification. The Division bells will be rung two minutes before the House resumes. Following my certification, the Government will be tabling the appropriate consent motion, copies of which will be available shortly in the Vote Office and will be distributed by Doorkeepers.

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On resuming—

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

I can now inform the House that I have completed certification of the Bill, as required by the Standing Order. I have confirmed the view expressed in Mr Speaker’s provisional certificate, issued on 24 January 2018. Copies of my final certificate will be made available in the Vote Office and on the parliamentary website.

Under Standing Order No. 83M, a consent motion is therefore required for the Bill to proceed. Copies of the motion are now available. Does the Minister intend to move the consent motion?

[Ms Ghani]

indicated assent.

The House forthwith resolved itself into the Legislative Grand Committee (England) (Standing Order No. 83M(3)).

[Dame Rosie Winterton in the Chair]

[The Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

I remind hon. Members that, if there is a Division, only Members representing constituencies in England may vote. I call the Minister to move the consent motion.

Motion made, and Question proposed,

That the Committee consents to the following certified clauses of, and Schedules to, the High Speed Rail (West Midlands – Crewe) Bill:

Clauses and Schedules certified under SO No. 83J as relating exclusively to England and being within devolved legislative competence

Clauses 1 to 33, 35, 37 and 40 to 62 of, and Schedules 1 to 28 and 30 to 32 to, the Bill (Bill 397).—(Ms Ghani.)

[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

We should not let these sittings of the English Parliament go completely unremarked. In particular, it is good to see the Secretary of State for Transport in his place because, of course, as Leader of the House he introduced the EVEL—English votes for English laws—processes in which we now rejoice.

As you said, Dame Rosie, as the Member for a Scottish constituency, I am completely diminished in these proceedings, having no opportunity to vote, but I am glad the House had an opportunity to do so earlier. One day, as I have said before, Members from England will speak in the Legislative Grand Committee but, once again, I fear we are to be disappointed this evening.

Question put and agreed to.

The occupant of the Chair left the Chair to report the decision of the Committee (Standing Order No. 83M(6)).

The Deputy Speaker resumed the Chair; decision reported.

Third Reading

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[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. Before the Minister replies, I should say that I was in the Chair earlier. The Minister did look around eagerly during her wind-up for the hon. Gentleman and I fear he was not there.

[Michael Fabricant]

On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I did speak to the Minister earlier and she suggested that I intervene only once Third Reading had begun and not during the earlier stages. I only wished to comply with her.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that point of order. I think we should now probably just resume the debate.

[Ms Ghani]

I am not sure who is chastised there, Madam Deputy Speaker, but I am pleased to see that my hon. Friend is in his place. The notice to proceed and the business case will be in the public domain later this year, which is why we need to have enabling works, so that they support the “pre” work that needs to take place before the line can be built. I know that my hon. Friend loves progress and speed, and he would like our country to be seen as a progressive country that connects cities to cities. He will want to see this line built as fast as possible and he would never want to be held responsible for slowing it down.