Stockton to Darlington Railway

Tracey Crouch Excerpts

Wednesday 16th September 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Tracey Crouch)]

I thank the hon. Member for Sedgefield (Phil Wilson) for securing this debate and his colleagues, the hon. Members for Stockton North (Alex Cunningham), for Darlington (Jenny Chapman), and for Bishop Auckland (Helen Goodman), for their contributions. I did think for a nanosecond that I was going to have to employ my referee qualifications to intervene on who did what first and when.

I cannot tell you, Madam Deputy Speaker, how excited I was when I learned that I was answering this debate. I think that my officials thought that I was slightly mad. They were definitely rather surprised by my reaction. The fact is that it is two excellent topics— trains and heritage—combined into one debate. That is a perfect excuse for me to sit on the sofa on a rainy Sunday, dust off the Bradshaw’s, fish out the “Great British Railway Journeys” box set and cheerfully brand it work. If Members have not seen the particular episode on the Stockton to Darlington railway, they should do so because it is really interesting.

I do not need a book or a DVD to tell me that we should not underestimate the role of our early railways and their pioneers in developing Britain’s industry, paving the way for the industrial revolution. It is right that we should celebrate this vital aspect of our national heritage.

Preserving our railway heritage is extremely important. People have deep attachments to their local railway, as evidenced by the crowds greeting the Queen when she recently reopened the historic Borders to Edinburgh railway. Railways clearly continue to be as important to growth today—demonstrated by the Government’s plans to support the northern powerhouse—as they were two centuries ago. Today, we are able to celebrate not only the anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington railway, but the 190th anniversary of the Locomotion No. 1 engine leaving George Stephenson’s works in Newcastle on its way to Darlington. Rail lines had been in use previously, but this line was the first locomotive rail line not just in England but in the world. Stephenson was convinced steam was the future, and he was right. Steam was initially designed for freight, but then passengers, undeterred that it took two hours to do 12 miles, became integral to its future. Put simply, this line, with Locomotion No. 1, revolutionised the railway industry.

The engine, which is on display at the local Head of Steam museum, looks amazing. In the episode of “Great British Railway Journeys”, Michael Portillo looked incredibly excited to see it. If I ever get the opportunity to slip away from this place, I would be delighted to make it all the way up to the north-east.

[Jenny Chapman]

The Minister would be very welcome at the Head of Steam museum in my constituency, which is within the first passenger railway station. It is a good museum, but, unlike the National Railway Museum in York and the site in Shildon, it is not a free museum. I feel that the site would benefit enormously by being included in that scheme, and it is worthy of that status. I would be grateful if she could give that matter some thought.

[Tracey Crouch]

That matter is not within my remit, but I will pass it on to the Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Wantage (Mr Vaizey), who is responsible for museums. I have a confession to make. In the mid-1990s, he worked for the Conservative Member for Stockton South, and so is very familiar with not just the line, which goes through Yarm and Eaglescliffe, but some of the local museums. I am sure that officials will draw the Minister’s attention to the hon. Lady’s comments.

Railway museums, including the National Railway Museum’s “Locomotion” site at nearby Shildon, have a key role in preserving and promoting railway heritage, so I am pleased that they will be playing an important part in the celebrations.

Interestingly, a local holiday was declared for the opening of the Stockton and Darlington railway on 27 September 1825. Whether or not the crowds who took part in that first historic journey, which reached dizzy speeds of up to 15 mph, realised that it was the advent of a trailblazing technology that would soon carry thousands of passengers across the country is unclear. However, the railway and Stephenson’s new engines were at the forefront of the development of industry and passenger travel nationally and around the world.

Throughout the anniversary we should celebrate the development of our railways and their continued connection to industry in Britain. It is appropriate that at the beginning of this month, as the hon. Member for Sedgefield mentioned, the Prime Minister, the Chancellor and the Transport Secretary opened the new Hitachi factory at Newton Aycliffe, which was once on a branch line of the Stockton and Darlington railway. The factory will create more than 700 direct jobs and support thousands more indirectly, giving a huge boost to the local area.

One of the local projects commemorating the 190th anniversary is the HLF-funded Sharing Heritage project. Its aims include the training of 40 volunteers in heritage skills, such as recording the historic site, giving talks and delivering guided tours for visitors. As with all the best projects, it will encourage local people to engage in this important aspect of their heritage. Interestingly, research on participation in heritage projects has found that Heritage Lottery Fund volunteers report levels of mental health and wellbeing that are higher than those of the general population. For example, one in three heritage volunteers report an increase in self-esteem and confidence in their abilities, so it is a fact: heritage really does make people happy.

We have heard about the aim to achieve world heritage status for the railway site. I would like to talk a little bit about the process. It is great that so many local people are engaged with this fantastic site and realise that it may well have importance far beyond their local community. They aspire for the site to achieve international recognition. A key part of demonstrating why any site should be awarded world heritage status is the gathering of evidence to demonstrate its outstanding universal value. The conference on the railway that took place in June was an excellent tool in starting to gather that evidence and hear the case.

Those involved will also need to consider whether they wish to develop the bid just for this site or as part of a “birth of the railway age” nomination in conjunction with other sites, such as Stephenson’s locomotive works in Newcastle. If they decide upon the latter, the support of other local authorities and key stakeholders, such as the Science Museum and National Rail, will be crucial to developing a successful bid.

Another key element of any potential nomination is demonstrating how well the site is managed and protected. Effective management can be achieved only through full understanding of the site, for example through the preparation of conservation management plans. The current project to record the railway line, which I understand Historic England is also working on, is a good step in that direction.

The nomination process is lengthy, due to the necessary evaluations and checks to ensure that only the most significant sites are nominated. The UK is currently undertaking a round of technical evaluations for sites on the UK tentative list. That list contains several sites that have not yet been fully considered for nomination and that will go through the process over the next few years. The tentative list is therefore unlikely to be reviewed any sooner than 2019.

[Helen Goodman]

The Minister is making a very helpful and interesting speech. She may not have the list in front of her, but will she look at the extent to which potential new world heritage sites are related to the industrial revolution? There has been a pattern of not giving the industrial sites the same status as other sites. The industrial sites are of interest not just to British people, but to people in other parts of the world whose industrial revolution was taking place at around the same time.

[Tracey Crouch]

I do not have that information with me, but we can certainly look into it. If that information is available, I am sure we can share it with the hon. Lady. It is important that inspiration is taken from other world heritage sites. Other sites celebrate the development of railways worldwide—for example, the Semmering railway in Austria, which is an amazing feat of engineering constructed between 1848 and 1854 over 41 km of high mountains and involving a series of tunnels and viaducts. I understand there is another site in India that similarly celebrates railways. I do not have the dates, but we can look at those heritage sites. Our own Forth bridge, which was inscribed in July, was the world’s earliest multi-span cantilever bridge, and is still one of the longest. That, too, has been celebrated. So there are examples out there of celebrating industry and engineering. If the Stockton and Darlington railway is to become a world heritage site, we need to decide whether to pursue an individual nomination processor to take a broader and more co-ordinated approach celebrating rail heritage and the industrial revolution.

I understand that the members of the Friends of Stockton and Darlington railway group have already been in touch with Historic England and the UK National Commission for UNESCO on this issue. Colleagues from each of these organisations are happy to provide further advice on the matter. It is appropriate that I join hon. Members who have contributed to the debate in congratulating the Friends group on all the work that they have been doing. They sound fantastic.

In conclusion, from the advent of the Stockton and Darlington railway to high-speed rail, for nearly 200 years the railways have been an integral part of our nation. I congratulate all those involved with the 190th anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington railway and wish them every success with their efforts to celebrate, preserve and promote this important aspect of our national story. I also look forward to supporting the hon. Member for Sedgefield and his colleagues in 10 years’ time in a debate for the 200th anniversary.

Question put and agreed to.