Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will take steps to introduce a rail freight terminal near Spalding.

The Government recognises that the economic and environmental potential of rail freight is significant and is fully committed to supporting its growth. Under our plans to deliver the biggest overhaul of the railways in a generation, Great British Railways will have a duty and targets to grow the use of our railways to transport freight.

Rail freight terminals are either developed and operated by the private sector where there is a demand for rail freight that is commercially viable or, where Network Rail owns or can obtain the freehold to the land, it will work with the private sector to develop a rail freight terminal.

While Network Rail does not own the relevant land near Spalding, work is currently continuing to explore developing an intermodal rail freight interchange on Network Rail land in Peterborough, which would help to address the current road-only option to transport goods from the nearby Lincolnshire area.