Thursday Volume 497 22 October 2009 No. 129 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Thursday 22 October 2009 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2009 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Parliamentary Click-Use Licence, available online through the Office of Public Sector Information website at www.opsi.gov.uk/click-use/ Enquiries to the Office of Public Sector Information, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 4DU; e-mail: [email protected] 1037 22 OCTOBER 2009 1038 for Cheshire and Merseyside, as it will ease congestion, House of Commons improve public transport and create more than 4,000 jobs. It will also create hundreds of much needed construction jobs during its construction phase. Thursday 22 October 2009 Mr. Khan: I acknowledge the role that my hon. The House met at half-past Ten o’clock Friend has played as an advocate for the Mersey gateway bridge. I have heard him ask questions of the Prime Minister and raise the matter in debate, and I have also PRAYERS heard the representations made by Halton borough council. I commend both him and the council for all the [MR.SPEAKER in the Chair] hard work that they have done. My hon. Friend has heard from me the time scales in BUSINESS BEFORE QUESTIONS respect of when we expect to receive the public inspector’s report. He will be aware of the scheme’s complexities, BOURNEMOUTH BOROUGH COUNCIL BILL [LORDS] but I assure him that we have taken on board the points Motion made, That the Bill be now considered. that he has made and the sense of urgency that he has Hon. Members: Object. expressed this morning. Bill to be considered on Thursday 29 October. MANCHESTER CITY COUNCIL BILL [LORDS] Rail Services Motion made, That the Bill be now considered. Hon. Members: Object. 2. Mr. John Grogan (Selby) (Lab): If he will hold Bill to be considered on Thursday 29 October. discussions with train operating companies on proposals to increase the number of rail services CANTERBURY CITY COUNCIL BILL (BY ORDER) operating on Boxing day 2009. [294794] Motion made, That the Bill be now read the Third time. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport Hon. Members: Object. (Chris Mole): I understand from Network Rail that it Bill to be read the Third time on Thursday 29 October. plans to enable around 50 per cent. more rail services to run on Boxing day 2009 to reflect changing travel NOTTINGHAM CITY COUNCIL BILL (BY ORDER) demands, and I welcome this. As my hon. Friend is Motion made, That the Bill be now read the Third aware, Boxing day service provision is a matter for the time. train operating companies and Network Rail, as the Hon. Members: Object. owner and operator of the national network. Bill to be read the Third time on Thursday 29 October. Mr. Grogan: The almost full level of service on Boxing CITY OF WESTMINSTER BILL [LORDS] day in every other EU country means that people can Motion made, visit family and friends, attend sporting fixtures or go That so much of the Lords Message [12 October] as relates to shopping in the sales. When I met Lord Adonis this the City of Westminster Bill [Lords] be now considered.—(The spring he promised to contact the train operating companies First Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means.) on this matter. Should not the Government take a more Hon. Members: Object. active role in promoting a comprehensive Boxing day To be considered on Thursday 29 October. service in future? Oral Answers to Questions Chris Mole: I congratulate my hon. Friend on the way that he has advocated the development of services on behalf of the public, but I must advise him that his TRANSPORT international comparisons suggesting that this country is unusual in providing a relatively low level of service The Minister of State was asked— are misleading. Although Boxing day is a public holiday in England and Wales, by and large it is not in many Mersey Gateway Bridge continental European countries. I know that he understands 1. Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab): When he expects to that the seasonal break is an important time for Network announce his decision in respect of the proposed Rail to take possession of busy lines to undertake Mersey gateway bridge. [294793] essential maintenance. Although that will mean that there will be no access to destinations such as Manchester The Minister of State, Department for Transport international airport this year, there is evidence of growth (Mr. Sadiq Khan): The inspector’s report following the in travel over the Christmas and new year period, with recent public inquiry is not expected to be received until 23,000 more trains running in 2008 than in 2007. the middle of December and its recommendations will need to be considered carefully before the Secretary of Miss Julie Kirkbride (Bromsgrove) (Con): The Minister State can announce the decisions. A further decision on gave the House an interesting answer when he said that funding will be taken after that. services had increased by 50 per cent. So that we can Derek Twigg: May I urge my hon. Friend to make a understand that figure, will he say to what extent that decision as soon as possible after the inspector’s report represents the normal service on any other working day has been received? I remind him of the project’s importance of the year? 1039 Oral Answers22 OCTOBER 2009 Oral Answers 1040 Chris Mole: The 50 per cent. figure represents the Hugh Bayley: It is good to see the Government taking increase over previous years that is planned for this year action to promote high-speed railways, but when Network in the 2009 timetable. Rail published its report in August favouring the north-west over Yorkshire and the north-east, did the Minister of Mr. Tom Watson (West Bromwich, East) (Lab): To State notice, as I did, that it had failed to conduct the travel on a bank holiday, British citizens need to know same economic analysis of the benefits of the north-west the train operators’ timetables, but the data are licensed route and the Yorkshire route? Will he confirm that the as the companies’ intellectual property. Does not my Government will continue to consider Yorkshire and hon. Friend think that the timetable data belong to the the north-west on equal terms, and to pursue equally people, and that we should make them available for claims for routes on both sides of the Pennines? free? Mr. Khan: May I, through you, Mr. Speaker, reassure Chris Mole: My hon. Friend’s question would be my hon. Friend that HS2’s outlook is national? It is better directed at the Association of Train Operating important that we bear that in mind. Some people Companies, which owns the intellectual property behind would draw on the back of an envelope a line from the timetable. London to Birmingham to Manchester to Leeds, and that would be their high-speed link. We examine the benefits to all the corridors in our country to ensure Norman Baker (Lewes) (LD): Is it not symptomatic that all parts of the country get the benefits of high-speed of the culture and mindset that persists in the railway rail. industry these days that Boxing day, public holidays and Sundays are somehow not regarded as days on Philip Davies (Shipley) (Con): Does the Minister which people travel, as they were 50 years ago? When accept that a high-speed rail link to the north-west that are we going to get the seven-day railway that Network did not go to Yorkshire would have a detrimental impact Rail promised us? Is it not time that, instead of thousands on the economy in Yorkshire? of people being shoved on to bus replacement services, we had guaranteed rail services on Sunday? To give Mr. Khan: The hon. Gentleman makes a very good Network Rail an incentive and passengers a chance, point. I hope that his Front Benchers are listening. should not Network Rail give a third off the ticket price to those who are forced on to buses? Mr. David Clelland (Tyne Bridge) (Lab): Successive Governments have spectacularly failed to tackle the Mr. Speaker: Order. Front Benchers have got to learn north-south economic divide in any meaningful way. the habit of asking one question, not a quartet of Businesses and politicians in the north-east now believe questions. that one way to tackle the north-south divide is to make the travelling times between the two shorter and bring Chris Mole: This Government are the first Government the two closer together. Those are the priorities for the to assert the notion of the seven-day railway, and in north-east in terms of high-speed rail. Does the Minister doing so, we have had constructive dialogue with Network share them? Rail about the scheduling of maintenance works. Of course, one of the challenges we face now is that we are Mr. Khan: My hon. Friend makes an extremely important investing more in our railways than ever before to point about the vision we have for high-speed rail. One ensure that they are properly maintained. To undertake of the things we deliberately asked High Speed 2 to those works, the railway must be possessed by Network look into was the benefits of extending the high-speed Rail, which will judge the best time to do the work, link to Manchester, Yorkshire, the north-east and Scotland. which is inevitably a Sunday. It is important that, when HS2 reports this year, we consider the report and come back with proposals next High-speed Rail year.