East Midland Railway Collision

Rosie Wrighting Excerpts

Monday 22nd June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Heidi Alexander]

My hon. Friend is completely right to highlight the vital role that train drivers play. I would like to put on record my thanks to Dave Calfe, the ASLEF general secretary, for his statement over the weekend. The Rail Minister has spoken with the general secretary, and we will continue to work to ensure that drivers are safe. This has been a horrific incident, but such incidents are thankfully very rare on our railways. I will make sure that we continue that close collaboration to ensure that everyone—staff and passengers—is safe when they are on our trains.

[Rosie Wrighting (Kettering) (Lab)]

I thank the Secretary of State and her Department for their constant communication over the weekend, and the emergency services, which responded so quickly. My hon. Friend the Member for Wellingborough and Rushden (Gen Kitchen) is no longer on the Front Bench, but we have been in constant communication about how we can support our constituencies over the last few days. My thoughts are with everyone affected and the loved ones of the driver who so tragically lost his life.

This crash has been felt acutely in Kettering. Both trains stopped in Kettering before the collision, and it feels as though everyone knows someone who has been impacted. To add the real human element of this tragedy’s impact, I want to mention the story of one of my constituents, who was injured with a broken nose and extensive injuries to her back and neck. Following the crash, she and her friends had to walk through a hedge and over fields and then arrange private transport to Kettering general hospital. Understandably, it was a traumatic experience, and she has shown great strength since. Can the Secretary of State reassure those involved, such as my constituents, that the Government will work with the Department of Health to offer them support following this tragic event?

[Heidi Alexander]

I can reassure my hon. Friend of that, and she is right to highlight the very human impact of what happened. The trains were busy trains coming into London on a Friday evening. It concerns me to hear that her constituents had to organise private transport. Would she write to me in more detail about those circumstances, because I would like to look into that? I know that wraparound support was provided at the scene, and if anyone did not experience that, I would like to know so that we can be in contact with them and learn any lessons.