The Rt Hon Patrick McLoughlin MP, Secretary of State for Transport, made this speech at an event hosted by Campaign for Better Transport, with Pinsent Masons, in January 2015. Speeches by the transport spokespeople from the other two main parties will follow shortly.

[BEGINS]

When I sat down to think about what I might say tonight a very short speech came into my mind.

It had just two words.

‘Carry on’.

Attractive words for a politician not far from an election of course.

But attractive ones for transport, too, I hope.

Because this parliament, this government has been a very good one for transport.

A long-term economic plan that has seen serious political commitment.

To things like the , , HS2.

It has seen serious investment alongside that commitment.

To things like the £38 billion for rail and the Roads Investment Strategy.

And it has seen serious innovation, too.

To devolution - with things like the Local Growth Fund.

Or our massive commitment to new vehicle technology.

All this and more is making a difference.

And it will make more of a difference in the next parliament when things like Crossrail open.

I am strongly and genuinely proud of our record.

I think it is one of the best of any government in recent times.

And it is making our country stronger and more prosperous and a better place to live.

So my starting point tonight is not to propose a revolution in policy.

I don’t want to rip everything up.

I hope the broad thrust will continue.

I think it will.

And the benefits will come.

But of course if I just said that it wouldn’t be a full picture of the possibilities.

So I want to talk about those now.

They start with the two things I think we can say for certain about the next parliament - indeed the next decades. They are what you might call the fundamental truths for transport policy.

The first truth is that demand is going to grow.

The second truth is that technology will change.

More people will want to get about more and do it in ways that are quicker, cleaner, cheaper, easier.

So first, demand.

We are becoming a more mobile society and that is a good thing.

I absolutely disagree with the philosophy that says you should cap demand through price or capacity - choke off growth.

So we won’t.

That doesn’t mean that it’s going to be possible to provide an endless supply of every form of transport in every place.

This isn’t just a return to what some dismissed as ‘predict and provide’.

It is just called being sensible.

And if anything, I think the ’s models underestimate the level of growth we will see.

In the next parliament I think we should revisit those models - to make sure we are taking account of the growth of things like cycling.

Demand for all forms of transport is going up.

By 2040 traffic on our strategic roads network will grow by at least a quarter and possible more than half.

As London grows towards a population of 10m we need to work out new ways of getting people around

As northern cities revitalise we need to link them together better.

Across the nation, where rail lines are full, we need to improve them.

Where roads are jammed, we need to clear them.

And we will.

The second of my fundamental truths involves technology.

It is going to change transport in the next decades and we have only just begun to see how.

Some other industries - media and telecoms for instance - have already felt the force far more.

But transport will too.

And this is a good thing.

Take one example - the car industry.

Cars will be cleaner, quieter, much more automated.

In this parliament, Britain has become a world leader

In December 2014, one in every 78 new cars bought in the UK was a plug in hybrid. In the last year Tesla announced its intention to make the UK its European R&D base.

Ford announced it has chosen Dunton Technical Centre in the UK as one of two global hubs for the development of its electric powertrains.

On top of amazing work already being done by the likes of Toyota, Nissan and JLR.

Or take aviation.

Planes are getting much quieter and more efficient.

On Monday this week the first Airbus A350XWB took off from Heathrow.

A brand new type of plane that will soon cut the noise in the skies.

Almost three-quarters of it made from advanced materials.

Half of it carbon fibre.

Engines from Derby. Wings from Wales. Landing gear from Gloucester.

British technology at work.

Or take the railways - Mark Carne is right to champion the transformative effect of digital signalling.

I want us to go further.

There is no reason, by the end of the next parliament, why most rail tickets can’t be digital.

Allowing things like part-time season tickets and flexible fares.

Ending the complexity which makes buying a train ticket much harder than it should be.

Technology and transport together.

So that is the starting point.

Over the next five years a Conservative government would invest to create a transport system which - as I said in my last party conference speech - makes it easier to ‘get on and get around’.

Transport as an engine of opportunity. Of growth.

I want Britain to be the place people visit from around the world to learn what a great transport system is and how it is done.

And already that is happening - as any Crossrail engineer will tell you.

I want good transport to be a natural part of life in every part of England - something that just works.

It has got to be much more responsive to passengers.

It has got to be one that keeps costs and fares down.

As we have this year with the lowest increase in rail fares for a decade.

So how do we get there?

The starting point - to manage these forces of demand and technology - is that we must invest.

Clear plans for capital spending, set out over the long-term.

That is what the transport industry has always called for and it is what a Conservative government will provide. For national roads, that means a committed investment plan of £24 billion in this parliament and the next parliament.

Including £17 billion in the spending round for the next parliament.

Only we have promised that and only we will make it happen.

Things like a new strategic corridor to the South West via the A303, including a 1.8 mile tunnel at Stonehenge.

Or £4.5 billion to add extra lanes to our motorways by using smart technology to improve flows.

But of course it isn’t only on the road network we need or will see investment.

All will know about the massive investment in our rail network.

Electrification. New trains. New freight flyovers at places like Reading.

In London, Crossrail and Thameslink to create two massive capacity fast corridors - the best in Europe.

And study work on Crossrail Two.

Or new signalling in Cornwall to come so we can prepare for a half hourly service.

In fact if I just stood here and read out a list of the new rail projects that are underway we’d be here til midnight.

I understand, by the way, that my Labour opposite number recently boasted that he wasn’t a train spotter and he wanted to end the war on the motorist.

Well I have news for him.

There isn’t a war. And I’m no trainspotter.

But unlike him I know balanced, sustained investment when I see it.

And of course among those great investments is High Speed Two.

The phase one bill is in committee. We will pass it and we will begin building this essential line.

So yes, we need investment and a Conservative government will provide it.

But we also need vision.

The vision to rebalance our country - east - west and north - south.

It’s why this government has backed - as no government has before - the idea of a northern powerhouse.

It’s why we are developing plans for HS3, a new fast link across the Pennines.

The vision to solve the issue of airport capacity in the south-east which is why we set up Davies Commission.

And if I am still in this job after May, I look forward to receiving its report.

But I also believe that vision isn’t something that best comes from Whitehall.

With all best wishes to those who work in the Department for Transport, they don’t always know best.

The answer starts with trusting cities and towns and businesses to make their own decisions. That’s why a Conservative government will support a new elected mayor for Greater Manchester.

And we are making steps to devolve rail services in the north and in the West Midlands.

It is also about recognising that so much of the transport that matters to people is local.

Well-run local roads.

Good cycle routes.

Reliable and affordable buses.

Not all of this has to come from government, central or local.

I am a strong supporter of the market and its role at all levels of transport - working in partnership with the state.

Nationally we have reshaped rail franchising, as the excellent East Coast deal shows, the market serving passengers.

Locally as a Midlands MP I see the outstanding work being done by good private bus companies like Trent Barton.

And when government gets involved it has to get it right.

That is why I am pleased that today we are launching a £4 million fund to help develop ‘total transport’.

It is an idea which came partly from people like Stephen Joseph.

It is a way of joining up different forms of funding to support good transport particularly in rural areas.

Because it is not just changing levels of spending that affect rural buses.

It is also changing demand.

The traditional one service a week on market days local bus just isn’t any use now.

But we need different transport not no transport.

That’s why we have also just launched a £25 million fund to help buy buses for rural community operators.

And in the next parliament there is more that we can do for local transport.

Not just buses.

But cycling.

Spending on cycling doubled in this parliament.

The roads investment strategy includes £100 million to improve cycling provision at 200 key locations across the network

And a commitment to cycle-proof any new schemes being developed.

Because there is no contradiction between a big investment programme for roads and rail and good local transport.

Just as investment should not harm the environment.

Building with not against the landscape. Getting rid of ugly unnecessary road signs.

Just as at all levels, planning and design are vital to making transport work well.

Ensuring new housing has access to rail and bus and the roads can cope.

Understanding a basic but sometimes overlooked truth: that different places have different needs.

That what works in Bath might not be right for Bristol.

And that economic modelling and the BCR which fascinates the DfT does not hold all of the answers.

Now - I have spoken long enough.

As you know we are getting close to an election.

I didn’t want to waste your evening with long attacks on the other parties.

They will set out their stalls soon. Pretty empty ones.

With not much to offer in response to the forces I have described above.

Demand. Technology. Investment. Vision.

From Labour, there just seems to be some rather incoherent shouting.

Mixed with hatred for a market they don’t understand.

And no money at all - no funding - for even one of their promises.

But you don’t need me to say it. Judge yourself.

Just as you judge our plans which I hope - and believe - we will get the chance to make real.

Thank you.

[ENDS]

- Rt Hon Patrick McLoughlin MP