Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether an assessment has been made of the potential merits of extending the Thameslink service from Ebbsfleet to Essex to help reduce pressure from the Dartford crossing.

Ebbsfleet International is served by Southeastern and HS1, and I can confirm the Department has not assessed, nor has it asked Southeastern to investigate, the feasibility of running services from Ebbsfleet International to Essex.

Thameslink services do not serve Ebbsfleet International at present. This would only be possible with significant investment in infrastructure, as there is no railway currently connecting Ebbsfleet International to the Thameslink route.