Seema Malhotra
Main Page: Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)Department Debates - View all Seema Malhotra's debates with the Department for Transport
(11 years, 4 months ago)
Commons ChamberI do not accept that we spend a paltry amount of money. The local sustainable transport fund is £600 million—more than £1 billion with match funding—94 out of the 96 schemes have cycling elements; we have spent £107 million more on a range of cycling schemes in recent months; and there will be a further announcement on cycling spending shortly. I can assure the hon. Gentleman absolutely that spending on cycling will continue.
11. What his plans are for future investment in London’s transport network.
In his spending round statement yesterday, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor announced that the Government will give the Mayor almost £9 billion of capital spending and additional financing power to the end of this decade. We will also consider the case for Crossrail 2. In return, we expect the Mayor to bear down on the running costs of Transport for London. The Chief Secretary to the Treasury will make a statement in a moment about investment in infrastructure, including investment in transport for London.
The Piccadilly line is vital for thousands of my constituents travelling to work at the airport or to London and is a key route for Heathrow’s passengers. It is increasingly overcrowded and in need of upgrading. Will the Minister reassure me that where cuts are being made to Transport for London’s budget, made necessary by the Government’s failure to deliver growth, that will not put at risk this vital investment?
The hon. Lady seems to have missed my response to her question, in which I said that we announced yesterday that we were giving the Mayor almost an extra £9 billion of capital. It is for the Mayor to make decisions about how he deploys that capital.