Commons
Ministerial Statement
22 June 2026
22 contributions
East Midland Railway Collision
With permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, I would like to make a statement on the tragic collision between two passenger trains on Friday 19 June.
I realise that hon. Members will be aware of some of the details, but today I would like to set out the facts as we know them so far. At approximately 5.15…
I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his remarks and for the tone in which he has expressed himself. I share in the condolences he has expressed to the driver of the Corby train, Shaun Burton—as I said in my opening remarks, the thoughts of the whole House are with his family at this awful time.
Th…
+20 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
11 June 2026
10 contributions
Topical Questions
The King’s Speech promised to change the country for the better, and this Government are getting on with the job. Yesterday we completed the passage of the Railways Bill through this place, paving the way for Great British Railways and an industry that finally works for passengers instead of profit.…
Thank you, Mr Speaker. The Opposition like to chunter, but this Government are backing our aspirational words with real action. A stronger, fairer Britain is what we promised, and it is what we will deliver.
+8 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
11 June 2026
3 contributions
Road Safety
In January, we published the road safety strategy, which envisages a safer future for everyone on the road through targets to cut deaths and serious injuries by 65% for everyone and by 70% for children by 2035. It also promotes partnership working between Government, local authorities, industry and …
I recall the visit to my hon. Friend’s constituency, where I met her and the west midlands police and crime commissioner, Simon Foster. I remember being struck by how dangerous and pervasive that form of reckless behaviour is on her local roads. The Government are considering whether to mandate alco…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
11 June 2026
3 contributions
Road Junction Safety
Earlier this year, this Government published the first national road safety strategy in over a decade, setting out how we will cut road deaths and serious injuries on Britain’s roads by 65% by 2035. In March, we announced the third road investment strategy, which includes a targeted fund to improve …
I am aware of the hon. Gentleman’s concerns about the M3/A322 junction, and I understand that some improvements have already been made to the northbound section. It is Surrey county council’s responsibility to make improvements at the junction—I understand that it has the ability to make changes to …
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
11 June 2026
3 contributions
Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire: Transport Links
The Government are delivering a £1.3 billion package of transport and infrastructure improvements across Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire, including £474 million of investment in strategic road and rail upgrades around Bedford, a new four-platform station at Wixams and improvements to the A421 servin…
I am really pleased that we are accelerating the delivery of a new station at Tempsford, which will be the connection between East West Rail and the east coast main line. The Chancellor brought that forward in her Budget in 2024, and I want to make sure that public transport services are properly in…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
11 June 2026
5 contributions
Mass Transit Systems
The delivery of mass transit systems has too often been slowed down by fragmented funding arrangements, difficulties in acquiring land and complex planning processes. Our new mass transit taskforce, made up of an independent panel of experts, will make practical recommendations on how we can speed u…
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all his work on public transport in Exeter and the wider Devon area. He and I have met colleagues in this place, and I am willing to continue that conversation about how we can ensure that people in Devon have a reliable, frequent rail service and the connectivity…
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Ministerial Statement
19 May 2026
28 contributions
High Speed 2 Reset
With permission, I will make a statement on High Speed 2.
Last summer, I stood at this Dispatch Box and promised that we would be straight with the British people not just about the appalling mess we inherited, but about how we would fundamentally reset the HS2 project. Today I am publishing the la…
My apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker.
Previous Prime Ministers, in my view, created the world’s most expensive slow-motion car crash, and they barely batted an eyelid. This Government have rolled up our sleeves and done the hard yards, putting the right team in place and being honest about the scale …
+26 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
10 contributions
Topical Questions
The Government are today announcing one of the biggest ever investments in England’s major roads. That £27 billion spread over five years is a down payment on better motorways, smoother journeys and less congestion across the country. We will finally kick off dualling the A66 between Cumbria and nor…
I am delighted to confirm that improvements to the A19 at Moor Farm have been included in the pipeline of schemes that we have asked National Highways to develop for construction. I thank my hon. Friend for her tireless advocacy on behalf of her constituents, and for making such a strong case for th…
+8 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
2 contributions
Transport Connectivity: Dudley
We are empowering the Mayor of the West Midlands to deliver the better, more reliable connections that communities in Dudley need and deserve. Mayor Richard Parker is already putting the £2.4 billion in more flexible, integrated funding that we are providing to good use, delivering on transformative…
The metro’s expansion represents a major boost for growth in Dudley and the west midlands, delivering fast, affordable and reliable connections to Birmingham, Wolverhampton, the Black Country and beyond. Together with the Dudley interchange, it will transform local transport, unlocking access to job…
Commons
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
3 contributions
Support for Motorists
This Government are taking significant action to make journeys safer and smoother, while helping motorists to save money. We are investing £27 billion in motorways and trunk roads, and a record £7.3 billion to fix potholes and resurface local roads. We have extended the fuel duty freeze, launched a …
The Government have already taken significant steps to keep the costs of motoring low, extending the fuel duty cut that was due to end this month until September and launching the fuel finder tool. Together, those measures will save motorists £129 compared with previous plans. We will monitor develo…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
3 contributions
Rail Renationalisation: East of England
On behalf of the Government, may I associate myself with your remarks about David Winnick and extend our condolences to his family?
Bringing Greater Anglia and other east of England train operators into public ownership will put passengers first. Since coming into public ownership in 2025, both Gre…
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his advocacy on behalf of his constituents and those using rail services in his area. I can assure him that Greater Anglia continually looks for opportunities to improve service frequency. Services will be strengthened for customers and communities on regional rou…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
12 February 2026
16 contributions
Topical Questions
This Government are ushering in a new era for our railways, with landmark legislation to set up Great British Railways making good progress in this place. Eight train operators are now run by the public for the public, with West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway services nationalised …
I will ask my hon. Friend the Minister for Aviation to meet my hon. Friend to discuss her concerns, as I appreciate that this is a sensitive issue for many people. Airspace modernisation will provide huge benefits for air passengers, businesses and the UK economy, and the move to more efficient flig…
+14 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
12 February 2026
4 contributions
Road Maintenance Funding
Proper investment in maintaining our roads saves drivers shelling out hundreds of pounds for pothole-related repairs and makes journeys safer and smoother for millions of people every day. That is why we are investing a record £7.3 billion over the next four years to help councils maintain roads, an…
It is sadly a fact that we have seen a decade of under-investment in our road network. This Government are putting record money into local councils —£1.6 billion this year, which is £500 million more than the year before—and we will be doubling the amount of money spent on local road maintenance ove…
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
12 February 2026
7 contributions
Rail Transport and Economic Growth
Good, well-run rail services support economic growth. We are investing more than £10 billion over four years to improve the railway, as well as progressing work on major schemes such as HS2, East West Rail and the trans-Pennine route upgrade. Our reforms to establish Great British Railways will driv…
The timetable change on the east coast main line in December last year has meant extra seats and extra services for many parts of the north-east. The new timetable, plus additional fast services on the Durham coastline, has provided faster journeys to more customers across the north, too. I know tha…
+5 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
12 February 2026
3 contributions
Commuter Safety
My Department is working across Government and with partners, including the British Transport police and the transport industry, to ensure that everyone both feels safe and is safe when travelling. Our mainline railway is among the safest in Europe, and our recently published road safety strategy se…
I do understand the importance of that junction to the hon. Gentleman’s constituents, and he has previously asked me about the scheme. It is a Transport for London scheme. I would point out that the previous Government—which, before switching to a different party on the Opposition Benches, he was a …
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
12 February 2026
7 contributions
Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate
This Government remain fully committed to the zero emission vehicle transition and the ZEV mandate. In 2025, the UK had the largest electric vehicle market share of any major European economy, thanks to the certainty provided by clear Government policy and the £7.5 billion that we are investing by 2…
I am surprised that the right hon. Gentleman talks about U-turns. I am sure that I should not be doing this, but I reviewed his tweets from none other than the 2019 general election, in which he was very excited about decarbonisation schemes, electric vehicle infrastructure and clean energy. Perhaps…
+5 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
2 February 2026
7 contributions
High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill
I beg to move,
That the following provisions shall apply in respect of the High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill if proceedings on the Bill have not been completed before the end of this Session or any subsequent Session of this Parliament (each a “qualifying Session”).
Suspension at end of qu…
The motions we have before us today are vital for the delivery of the High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill. It is important that I am clear at the outset about what these motions do and what they do not do. This is categorically not about reinstating HS2 north of the west midlands, and neither …
+5 more contributions in this session
Commons
Ministerial Statement
14 January 2026
43 contributions
Northern Powerhouse Rail
With permission, I would like to make a statement on the Government’s plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail. I realise that I am not the first Minister to talk about transforming infrastructure in the north of England, and I get why people there are sick to the back teeth of Westminster politicians pro…
I cannot believe what I have just heard, to be honest. I know that the hon. Gentleman is standing in for the shadow Transport Secretary, the right hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Holden), but I really hoped that he would have done a bit better than that.
The hon. Gentleman talks about n…
+41 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
8 January 2026
15 contributions
Topical Questions
Yesterday marked a turning point for road safety in Britain. Our new road safety strategy, the first for 10 years, will save lives and end years of complacency. Our targets are ambitious: reducing those killed or seriously injured on our roads by 65% by 2035, and by 70% for children under 16. That m…
It is a simple fact that communities in the north of England have had to put up with second-rate transport systems for far too long. I can guarantee that this Government are fully committed to Northern Powerhouse Rail. I understand that the hon. Gentleman is impatient for announcements. He may have …
+13 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
8 January 2026
3 contributions
Transport for London: Commuter Services
I am pleased to see the hon. Gentleman in his place. I assure him that I am in regular contact with the Mayor of London on a range of matters, and he and I discussed the proposed devolution of Great Northern inner services to Transport for London when we last met in November. My officials have been …
The discussions at the moment are limited to the potential transfer of services that form part of the Great Northern inner network. This is a fiendishly complicated thing to do, but I do recognise the benefits of bringing certain commuter lines into London Overground and making them part of that net…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
8 January 2026
8 contributions
Economic Growth: Transport System
Transport is a key enabler of economic growth. That is why we are investing £92 billion to maintain and modernise our roads and railways, to deliver major projects such as HS2 and East West Rail, and to support leaders in our towns and cities to improve local public transport networks. This will str…
I appreciate what a fearsome and impatient advocate my hon. Friend is for her constituency, and I am sure she will leave no stone unturned in exploring potential funding options with local partners to reopen some of those stations. I will gladly ask the Rail Minister to sit down with her to discuss …
+6 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Transport
8 January 2026
4 contributions
Rail Fares
This Government are committed to bringing the cost of living down, while supporting opportunity and aspiration across the whole of the UK. From March, regulated rail fares will be frozen for the first time in 30 years, meaning that over 1 billion journeys can be made in the coming year for the same …
My hon. Friend is completely right to raise the issue of affordability for the travelling public. After the relentless fare hikes under the last Government—ticket prices went up by 60%—I think the announcement by this Labour Government will be welcomed by millions of people who are using our trains …
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
9 December 2025
24 contributions
Railways Bill
I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time.
Two centuries ago, the first passenger railway services to run in the UK symbolised the hope and ambition of a confident nation, yet today that same railway symbolises something rather different. Every cancelled service, every cramped carriage…
The hon. Lady is right to say that South Western Railway had a difficult few months after it came into public ownership, but the problems that it is experiencing were inherited from the private sector operator. The number of new Arterio trains on the South Western Railway network has quadrupled sinc…
+22 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
1 December 2025
4 contributions
Budget Resolutions
It is a privilege to respond to today’s debate on the Budget. We have heard some excellent contributions from many colleagues, particularly those on this side of the House, and I hope my hon. Friends will forgive me if I do not mention them all by name. I will respond in writing to the specific ques…
I will certainly undertake to have those conversations with colleagues.
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
20 November 2025
14 contributions
Topical Questions
I would like to start by placing on record my deep gratitude to the brave railway staff and emergency responders who dealt so heroically with the appalling attack in Huntingdon a few weeks ago. I am relieved that LNER staff member Sam Zitouni is now continuing his recovery at home. I am sure the who…
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for her dogged campaigning on road safety, and thank her for talking to me about this issue and others when I visited West Bromwich earlier this year. We are determined to tackle illegal ghost plates and will publish our road safety strategy before the end of the year…
+12 more contributions in this session