Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Seema Malhotra and Chris Grayling

Thursday 21st March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

I will be very happy to meet my hon. Friend. He knows my concern about the need to guarantee enough capacity for regional connections. It is one of the reasons we have said there will be a bloc of new capacity at Heathrow airport, when it expands, set aside for regional connections. That is fundamentally important to the future of aviation in the United Kingdom.

[Seema Malhotra (Feltham and Heston) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Secretary of State highlights the projected increase in passengers, particularly at Heathrow. In recognising that and planning ahead, does he agree that a new southern rail access to Heathrow serving Surrey and southern markets and going, hopefully, via Feltham in my constituency, will be a positive contribution, increasing the speed at which passengers reach Heathrow and reducing congestion?

[Chris Grayling]

I absolutely agree: we need both western and southern access to Heathrow. That is an important part of ensuring that the airport can expand in a sustainable way, but it will also make a real difference to the hon. Lady’s constituents who work at the airport.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Seema Malhotra and Chris Grayling

Thursday 14th February 2019 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

My right hon. Friend is very committed to her view on this matter, but this House voted by a majority of nearly 300 to pursue this project and give Heathrow the green light. It now has to go through detailed consent processes, but I believe that it is a project that is strategically important to the United Kingdom.

[Seema Malhotra (Feltham and Heston) (Lab/Co-op)]

A new Southern rail link connecting the south and south-west with Heathrow via Feltham was favourably assessed by Network Rail two years ago as having the highest benefit-cost ratio of all the Southern rail options proposed. We are waiting on the edge of our seats for progress towards the next stage. When will the Secretary of State be able to announce funding and proposed plans to take the project to the next stage, so that we can start to move forward?

[Chris Grayling]

I regard Southern rail access as extremely important. We are now looking in detail at what we believe the specification of the scheme should be. It will clearly require some degree of public support, and that is the next stage, which I expect to pursue in the coming months, albeit relatively soon.

Airports National Policy Statement

Debate between Seema Malhotra and Chris Grayling

Tuesday 5th June 2018 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

I will speak to Heathrow airport this afternoon and get someone to send my right hon. Friend a job application. However, whether the project will use some of the heavy equipment that he has at his disposal is a different question.

[Seema Malhotra (Feltham and Heston) (Lab/Co-op)]

Past polling suggests that my constituents are, on balance, in principle in favour of Heathrow’s expansion due to the support that will be provided to small and medium-sized enterprises and the employment that is dependent on Heathrow. However, they are rightly concerned about noise, pollution, respite and night flights—the issues that have been discussed today—and confidence in Heathrow is not high, based on past performance. Flight paths are a significant issue, so will the Secretary of State ensure the publication of any proposals as soon as possible? That information should be available to Members before we vote. Will he also confirm that the criteria on which he will assess southern rail access will consider the regeneration benefits in addition to access from Surrey and from Waterloo?

[Chris Grayling]

On the last point, my view is that we just need to make the southern rail project happen. That is why we are looking to get the private sector to do it. It is a project that can be delivered by the private sector, and private consortia are interested in doing so. As for flight paths, it is necessary to work off the back of Heathrow’s initial design work to consider the requirements for them. That involves setting out the exact geography of our airports and then mapping what we need around them. That is the process, and a major reorganisation of our airspace will happen in the early 2020s. That would have had to happen anyway, and this proposal will bed into that.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Seema Malhotra and Chris Grayling

Thursday 24th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

I can assure my hon. Friend that there has not been a change to capacity on the Maidstone East line. Some trains on the new timetable are faster and some are slower, but in overall terms the services will continue to deliver for passengers. Right now, as I explained to the House a little while back, we clearly have initial problems with the new timetable. This is the biggest logistical change that the railways have made for a very long time. My Department is working very closely with all those involved to try to get this sorted out as quickly as possible. But this is all about delivering more services, longer trains and new destinations across the south-east, and once it is bedded in, I think that passengers in his constituency and elsewhere will see the benefits.

[Seema Malhotra (Feltham and Heston) (Lab/Co-op)]

Will the Secretary of State update the House on his invitation for proposals on a southern rail link to Heathrow? This is of great interest to families and businesses in my constituency, with the potential for a direct rail link from Waterloo to Heathrow via Feltham.

[Chris Grayling]

That is very timely, because after this Question Time session I am going to meet a number of organisations that are interested in participating in this project. As the hon. Lady knows, we are going to deliver a massive improvement to service access around Heathrow. Western access will be delivered through the control period 6 process, and I aim for southern access to be a privately funded project. This has enormous potential to link not just Waterloo to Heathrow but to link parts of the south-west network through Heathrow on to Paddington.