Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Wales Office

Oral Answers to Questions

Scott Benton Excerpts
Wednesday 19th May 2021

(3 years, 7 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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The Secretary of State was asked—
Scott Benton Portrait Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)
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What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on connectivity and infrastructure within Wales and cross-border.

Marco Longhi Portrait Marco Longhi (Dudley North) (Con)
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What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on connectivity and infrastructure within Wales and cross-border.

Simon Hart Portrait The Secretary of State for Wales (Simon Hart)
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My hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State and I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues about cross-border connectivity and the Union connectivity review.

Scott Benton Portrait Scott Benton
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From the castles of north Wales to the pleasure beach in my constituency, popular tourist attractions across north Wales and the north-west of England will host thousands of visitors this summer as people choose to holiday here in the UK rather than abroad. In order to support tourism and economic growth, it is vital that we strengthen transport links between those regions, so does my right hon. Friend agree that delivering on our manifesto pledge to upgrade the notoriously congested A55 must remain an absolute priority?

Simon Hart Portrait Simon Hart
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I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that question, and he is right. I have visited the area quite a bit recently and seen exactly the challenges ahead. It is a manifesto commitment. We visited with the Transport Secretary. That is very much in our sights, and we hope to have some good news about it in the foreseeable future.