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Category: Transportation

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2025 Statement on Dartford Crossing Charges

    Lilian Greenwood – 2025 Statement on Dartford Crossing Charges

    The statement made by Lilian Greenwood, the Transport Minister, in the House of Commons on 17 June 2025.

    The Dartford Crossing is the only fixed road crossing of the River Thames, east of London, and one of the most important links in the strategic road network.

    To manage demand and protect the crossing’s role as a vital component of the nation’s economic infrastructure, a user charge has been collected at the crossing since 2003. In 2014, the tollbooths were removed to help make journeys smoother and the charge was increased to help manage increased demand. This was the last time that charges were increased for all vehicles.

    In the 11 years since, demand at the crossing has grown 7.5%, with the crossing now used by an average of over 150,000 vehicles every day and up to 180,000 vehicles on the busiest days. These traffic levels are well in excess of the crossing’s design capacity, causing delays for drivers using the crossing, congestion and journey disruption to drivers on the M25 and a range of knock-on impacts for local communities.

    Current charging levels are no longer sufficient to achieve their stated aim of managing demand so that the crossing works well for users and local people. The need to increase the charges to manage traffic highlights the need for the additional capacity that LTC, for which the government confirmed new funding yesterday, will provide.

    To secure the effective operation of the crossing, I have, therefore, decided to increase the charges for all vehicle types that currently pay to use the crossing from 1 September 2025. The new tariff is given below.

    Class Vehicles One-off payment Pre-pay account holders
    A Motorcycles, mopeds and quad bikes Free Free
    B Cars (including trailers), motorhomes and any minibuses that have 9 or less seats (including the driver’s seat) £3.50 £2.80
    C Buses, coaches, vans and other goods vehicles with 2 axles £4.20 £3.60
    D Buses, coaches, vans and other goods vehicles with more than 2 axles £8.40 £7.20

    The increase in charges for car drivers will be a maximum of £1, with significant discounts for local residents and account holders. The new charges will be significantly lower than if they had increased in line with inflation since the tariff was last fully revised in 2014.

    I am aware that these necessary changes to the charges will be unwelcome news for users of the crossing. However, we will continue to support local people through the local resident discount scheme and I have been determined to keep the nominal fee paid by local people as low as possible, as many rely on the crossing to get around their local area. Drivers who live in Dartford or Thurrock and who have signed up to the scheme will pay £25 for unlimited annual crossings from 1 September 2025 – a small increase from the current annual fee.

    There are no other changes to the charging scheme. Journeys made between the hours of 22:00 and 06:00 will continue to be free, when there is no need to manage demand, as will those made by motorcycles at any time and the bicycle pick-up service.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2025 Speech at the National Railway Museum

    Heidi Alexander – 2025 Speech at the National Railway Museum

    The speech made by Heidi Alexander, the Secretary of State for Transport, in the National Railway Museum in York on 10 April 2025.

    Thank you, David, for that introduction.

    Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the National Railway Museum in York.

    I’m tempted to say we’re in the country’s finest transport museum, but as a Swindon MP and a former Deputy Mayor for Transport in London, I feel I should tread carefully.

    So welcome to ONE of the VERY BEST transport museums in the country!

    It feels fitting for me to do my first big transport speech here.

    The history of our transport network — the stories of the men and women who designed it, built it, operated and used it — are woven into the fabric of our communities in 21st century Britain.

    And it’s you — the people in THIS room — who are adding to that rich tapestry every day.

    You keep life moving.

    You get children to school, commuters to work, and families to their holidays.

    You move the goods that stock our shelves, fuel our industries, and keep businesses thriving.

    You don’t just connect places — you connect people with the things that they need to get on in life.

    And it’s in the spirit of connection that I’d like to tell you a story.

    I hope you won’t be disappointed to learn that I haven’t invited you here for a big policy announcement or news headline, but rather to share a little bit about who I am and what I believe.

    I want to tell you a story about the people and places who have shaped my thinking.

    I grew up in Swindon.

    A proud railway town on the M4 corridor – a place with much to be proud of.

    It’s also a humble football town – and I can tell you, that as a Swindon Town supporter, I have learnt the lessons of humility all too well.

    By fate and circumstance, that’s where my journey began.

    Outside our semi detached house, I remember my dad’s first van parked up — ‘Malcolm Alexander Electrical Services’.

    I remember the first bike I was given – blue with a basket on the front — a bit like the blue crate I’ve got on my bike now.

    And I remember learning to drive around the town’s infamous Magic Roundabout.

    And the car factories that punctuate the town’s history – Rover, Honda and now, BMW.

    It’s fair to say that in 1980s Swindon, the car was king.

    It still is.

    The proliferation of out of town shopping centres, urban expansions and a minimal public transport network shaped the transport destiny of my town.

    Now, I won’t pretend that urban planning preoccupied my teenage mind too much.

    Back then, I was much more concerned about whether Wham! were going to make it to Number 1.

    But when I moved away and got my first job, I began to see the bigger picture…

    … that a poor transport network will limit choices.

    … that it can block the aspirations of young people.

    And, most important of all, a good transport network can do precisely the opposite.

    I was the first person in my family to go to university.

    And like so many, I found work and opportunities in the capital.

    And so it was, at the age of 29, I walked into Lewisham Town Hall as a newly elected councillor – becoming the cabinet member for regeneration just two years later.

    I loved that job, and I fell in love with transport.

    Now, I’ll admit …

    It wasn’t the language of highways management that enthralled me: “There’s no such thing as a speed hump Cllr Alexander, only speed tables and speed cushions.”

    But it was the extension of the East London Line, the creation of new brownfield sites around major railway stations, the improvements to walking and cycling links that really got me hooked.

    I learnt quickly that transport shapes a lot more than roads and railways.

    And equally important, I learnt that it takes a lot of people to shape transport itself.

    At Lewisham, I saw first-hand how transport investment could make a dramatic difference to people’s lives.

    Take Brockley Railway Station.

    For years, it was an uninspiring, inaccessible place.

    Uninviting, a bit run down.

    Not somewhere you’d instinctively love as you rocked up for your morning commute.

    But working with local campaigners, we delivered step-free access, a stunning landscaped ramp and better connectivity along the London Overground.

    Today, Brockley is thriving.

    It’s a place where the old and the new coexist.

    The Wetherspoons on the corner and fried chicken shops sit side-by-side with bakeries, breweries and a pedestrianised square.

    It was a transport scheme that built a stronger, more connected community.

    And, it was transport that made the difference down the road in Lewisham too.

    We transformed it — relocating and improving a bus station, moving a roundabout, redesigning the roads, creating land for new homes, new public spaces and new opportunity.

    And when I say “we”, I mean the hundreds of people from different organisations who made it happen — people like you.

    When a few years later I became the Member of Parliament for Lewisham East, transport was always right at the top of the list of my constituents’ concerns.

    The longer train station platforms that were worse than useless without the longer trains to stop at them.

    The toxic air being pumped into homes around the South Circular.

    And when I later became Deputy Mayor for Transport in London, I had the privilege of working on those concerns more closely than I had ever done before.

    Look, London is big.

    So yes, naturally, I’m proud of the big stuff:

    Straining to keep the capital moving through Covid.

    Working on the Elizabeth line to deliver the jewel in the crown of the UK’s rail network.

    Sticking to my guns on the Silvertown Tunnel, a new river crossing that enables London’s red double-deckers to go under the Thames to the east of Tower Bridge for the first time.

    But honestly, big doesn’t always mean beautiful.

    Transport isn’t just about the price tag on the project.

    It’s about delivering a better everyday experience – buses that come on time, accessible stations, well managed road works.

    I’m just as proud of the smaller projects that made a big difference — many delivered in London by my good friend and then colleague Will Norman — segregated cycle lanes on Jamaica Road and Evelyn St, more secure cycle parking, slower speeds on roads with high KSIs, a direct vision scheme to improve visibility from the cabs of HGVs.

    These were transport interventions which ultimately delivered better public health, as well as better public realm.

    So when I moved back to Swindon a couple of years ago, I wasn’t just carrying a dream about becoming the MP for my home town.

    I arrived with baggage — determined to deliver for Swindon in a similar way to London.

    Not the same solutions — as every place is different, but to give people options and opportunity.

    There isn’t something in the water that makes Swindonians love their cars more than Londoners.

    Just a reality that public transport is better in London.

    And I think it’s a failure of imagination, as much as a failure of policy, that young people in Swindon don’t have better options than I had decades ago.

    Because change is possible.

    Across the country — from Swindon to Shrewsbury,  Rotherham to Peterborough — we have underused transport assets.

    Unloved railway buildings — land surplus to requirements or land that could be made so.

    Neglected stations, like Brockley.

    Potential that shouldn’t go to waste, but we know that, too often, it does.

    And with vision, funding and collaboration, these could become hubs of regeneration, places that don’t just usher people through — but bring people together.

    We talk about delivering “London style” transport to other places.

    But I think we should talk more about “Swindon style” transport for Swindon, or “York style” transport for York.

    And I want to support the capability and capacity within councils and combined authorities to deliver regeneration, investment and tangible improvements.

    We have great mayors.

    We have great local leaders.

    We have great organisations working nationally and regionally.

    We have a lot of talent in this room and beyond.

    So, the question for me, is how do we best harness that?

    Obviously, this is a question that has vexed me particularly since I took a call from the Prime Minister at the tail end of November, asking me to serve as his Transport Secretary.

    And as someone who has skin in the game as a local MP and a passion to build on the work started by the force of nature, Lou Haigh, I naturally said yes.

    And here I am.

    Full-circle in some ways, and trying to shape a new path in another.

    And the task is to build a better decade for transport.

    Towards a better railway…

    Laying the foundations for reform — establishing Shadow Great British Railways and launching a consultation on the upcoming Railways Bill to unify track and train.

    Towards public ownership…

    Passing the Passenger Railway Services Act, with the first operators — Southwestern and c2c — moving into public hands in the coming months.

    Towards better buses…

    Introducing the Bus Services Bill, giving local authorities greater control over routes, timetables, and fares — backed by over £1 billion in investment to improve reliability and frequency.

    Towards better roads…

    Investing £1.6 billion in local highways, an uplift of £500 million on last year — enough to fill an extra 7 million potholes.

    Towards fairer work…

    Enshrining greater protections for seafarers in law.

    Towards cleaner skies…

    Introducing the Sustainable Aviation Fuel mandate and launching a consultation on the revenue certainty mechanism.

    Towards a fossil-free future…

    Supporting the installation of thousands of new EV charge points—helping to drive record electric car sales, with 31% of new cars sold in December last year being electric.

    And towards a transport system that supports the aspirations of everyone in this country…

    It’s why I am so proud to work with the ministerial team at the Department for Transport.

    Like me — and like all of us — they’ve seen the difference that good services make…

    …Whether it’s the tap-and-go trams and buses in Mike Kane’s patch, with fares capped at £2 on Greater Manchester’s Bee Network.

    …Or in Simon Lightwood’s patch, where the mass transit system will improve integrated travel options in West Yorkshire, improving access to opportunities for people in Leeds and Bradford.

    …Or, in Nottingham, where one of the local bus operators, Nottingham City Transport, has been voted UK operator of the year a record six times, with passenger satisfaction amongst the highest in the country. I hear Lilian Greenwood is a pretty good local MP too …

    And as for Peter Hendy, who is his own walking museum of transport knowledge, he has a phrase that I would like to steal.

    He talks about transport needing to be “boringly reliable”.

    And he’s right.

    If public transport options are boringly reliable, then it means day-to-day life is easier for everyone.

    So, by 2035, I want public transport to play a greater role in national life, becoming the easiest, most attractive choice… brilliantly and boringly reliable.

    Enrique Peñalosa, a former mayor of Bogotá, once said:

    “An advanced city is not one where the poor have to own a car, but one where the rich choose to use public transport.”

    That’s a vision I believe in.

    But I can picture the headlines now — so let me counter the column inches before they emerge: there is no such thing as a war on motorists.

    I drive. I own a car and I love it — a racing green Mini Cooper convertible.

    I walk. I cycle.

    I take buses, trains, and taxis.

    And I’ll bet most of you do too.

    No serious person is proposing to ask people like my dad, a self employed electrician, to swap their van for a bus, forcing them to lug all their kit around — I certainly am not.

    Through his career, my dad was a professional problem solver, and I hope I’ll carry the torch for that family tradition.

    But I’ll be focussing on solving the real problems, not wasting time on the invented ones.

    Because I’m sure everybody in this room would agree that where you live shouldn’t determine what you can achieve…

    …that your hometown, no matter how big or how small, should provide the transport options to meet your aspirations…

    … and that — if transport doesn’t nurture young people with the opportunities they deserve, then our entire economy misses out on the talent it needs to grow.

    That’s why we’re here today.

    To have the conversations that bring us closer together.

    I want to harness your talents, your expertise and your drive to solve real problems.

    Because, no matter where people are travelling to, they should be proud of where they’re coming from.

    Thank you, and have a lovely evening.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2025 Speech on Supporting the UK Aviation Sector

    Heidi Alexander – 2025 Speech on Supporting the UK Aviation Sector

    The speech made by Heidi Alexander, the Secretary of State for Transport, at the Airlines UK annual dinner in London on 25 February 2025.

    Good evening, everyone.

    I’ve had the pleasure of meeting some of you over the last couple of weeks individually. But I will be honest with you, not only did I not expect to find myself in this job, I also didn’t envisage spending quite so much time talking about airports.

    But I am glad I have because aviation not only underpins the growth we want, but our approach to it says a lot about the country we want to be.

    Now some might say the current debate about airport expansion highlights a fundamental tension between growing the economy, whilst protecting the environment.

    I say: we must do both.

    We could put our head in the sand and pretend that people don’t want to fly. Pretend that families aren’t dispersed across the globe. That they don’t work hard for, and enjoy, their summer holidays. We could pretend that businesses don’t have international clients and colleagues and that air freight isn’t a significant part of the UK’s trade by value. We could pretend that aviation isn’t critical to the economy of an island nation. But we would be knowingly detaching ourselves from reality.

    We live in an increasingly interconnected world. Whilst technology has in some respects brought us all so much closer together, there are some things that smartphones, streaming or Zoom just can’t replicate. So as a government, we have a choice – either engage with the world as we find it, or we fail. We know demand for air travel is only going in one direction. Record-breaking stats from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) last week confirm passenger levels were 7% higher in 2024 than the previous year. Demand is up – and if we don’t meet it, then we will lose out to our European competitors and risk being on the wrong side of public aspirations.

    So the Chancellor has been clear: we will do all we can to support the sector and take the brakes off growth. It’s why we’ve approved London City Airport’s plans to expand to 9 million passengers per year by 2031 and it’s why we welcomed Stansted’s additional £1.1 billion investment to extend its terminal. But there remain capacity problems – particularly at airports in the southeast.

    So, as you know, planning applications for Gatwick and Luton are literally on my desk. And as you might have picked up, the government has invited proposals for a third runway at Heathrow to be brought forward by the summer. Once received, we will move at speed to review the Airports National Policy Statement. But let me be clear – this is in no way a blank cheque. My job as decision maker on all of these schemes will be to strike a balance – between expansion’s potential benefits of jobs, trade and tourism, with tough questions on:

    • whether this is compatible with our climate and air quality obligations
    • whether we can minimise noise and disruption to local communities
    • whether this will benefit airlines and passengers, and how we make sure costs are shared fairly

    This government believes in increasing airport capacity. We’re ambitious for the sector, but these strict criteria must be met if we are to balance the needs of today with the necessities of tomorrow.

    But it’s not just about airport expansion – I want us to take a holistic look at aviation. Our Aviation Minister, Mike Kane, has worked with many of you for years on what are now some of this government’s key manifesto commitments. He has seen first-hand this sector re-emerge stronger from one of its toughest periods and stand today at the cusp of what could be the biggest transformation in its 100-year history. Now more than ever, you need a government that is a willing partner you can trust, whose electoral mandate provides stability, and whose policy agenda provides certainty.

    But I would ask that you judge me and the government not on what we say – because goodness knows you’ve had enough of politicians promising you things. But judge us on the choices we make. While this government is only 8 months old, our choices are clear. Every decision measured against the yardstick of growth:

    • planning reforms – delayed by successive governments as just too hard, now allowing us to finally build again
    • a national wealth fund – now creating thousands of jobs and unlocking investment
    • the first industrial strategy in years – due this summer
    • work accelerated on modernising our airspace, that critical national infrastructure which gets forgotten far too often

    Right across the board, it’s clear, we’re choosing growth. For us here tonight, that means running hell for leather towards greener and quieter flights. Stand still and we risk making ourselves poorer in every way. I, therefore, see both decarbonisation and modernisation, above all, as a moral mission.

    Let me be clear, I have no intention of clipping anyone’s wings. I am not some sort of flight-shaming eco-warrior. I love flying – I always have. For me, there is something intrinsically optimistic about taking to the sky. I’d even go as far as saying that EasyJet’s bacon sandwich on an early morning flight from Gatwick is up there with my favourite things in life. Other airports, operators and snacks are of course available!

    I believe it is incumbent on all those in public life to give businesses the tools for success and increase opportunities for people to improve their lot. That means more passengers and freight in the air, not less. But I am equally clear that this must also mean less carbon, not more. That’s why sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is so important. Over its lifecycle, it will reduce emissions by 70% when compared with jet fuel. And just weeks into office, we reiterated our commitment to the SAF Mandate and, in November, we signed it into law.

    Throughout, we’ve listened to your concerns. You rightly said demand without supply will mean higher costs – and that’s on top of pressures you’re already facing on many fronts. Harming your competitiveness doesn’t help anyone. So I don’t suggest for a second that SAF is a silver bullet, but it is integral to reaching net zero aviation by 2050 – that’s why we are backing it to the hilt. And by legislating for a price guarantee, we will send a clear signal to investors: that this is a serious opportunity for you.

    It will give certainty to producers looking to grow their UK production, and our £63 million investment in the Advanced Fuels Fund will ensure we start becoming more self-sufficient.

    I know it is early days, and many technologies are not yet scaled, but SAF sits alongside a range of other levers that we must pull to decarbonise the sector. More efficient aircraft and engines will burn less fuel and play a key role. We are even starting to get ready for zero emission flights. These projects – and more – are supported by nearly £1 billion in government funding for the aerospace technology programme as well as the CAA’s hydrogen in aviation regulatory challenge. And I’ve mentioned it already, but our ongoing commitment to airspace modernisation is key for both growth and decarbonisation, with the potential for quicker and greener flights.

    Getting all this right matters – it matters for the planet and for the next generation. I don’t have children, but I know what I want for my nieces and nephew.

    A world ravaged by climate change and extreme weather events? Of course not.

    A world where they have been denied the opportunities to travel that I have? No.

    I want them to live life. To fly. To see different places. Experience different cultures. To understand that those who would see countries retreating into their own corners of the globe are on the wrong side of history.

    So this matters – for the next generation, but also for today. Decarbonising aviation could be worth billions to the economy, and support thousands of jobs. It is an important enabler to our industrial strategy.

    And if we are to be successful, we must embrace partnership.

    I am grateful to many in this room for your involvement in the Jet Zero taskforce, it’s crucial that we pool our resources and expertise – both government and industry – to secure this industry’s future.

    So, I’ll finish by saying this – the government’s Plan for Change depends on aviation’s success, on the economic value you bring, on the jobs you support, on the trade you facilitate. But that growth depends on us running as fast as we can towards cleaner aviation. It’s the only way to break out of the paralysis successive governments have tolerated.

    The new aviation futures forum will be a crucial vehicle for that work. Some of you may remember this as the Aviation Council – and I’m sorry that we seem to have to rename everything when there’s a change of government. But I hope it’s clear that our commitment is immutable: we are as determined as you are to tackling our shared challenges.

    I don’t just want to talk about challenges though. Because if we continue making the right choices, we will achieve our shared vision of a growing, thriving aviation sector. One that improves both the lives and the livelihoods of people right across the country. Not many sectors so visibly and tangibly sustain both our economy and people’s lives. So let’s make sure, together, that we secure more of those benefits in the future.

    Thank you.

  • Louise Haigh – 2024 Letter of Resignation Sent to Keir Starmer

    Louise Haigh – 2024 Letter of Resignation Sent to Keir Starmer

    The letter sent by Louise Haigh, the Secretary of State for Transport, to Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, on 29 November 2024.

    Text of Letter (in .pdf format)

  • Keir Starmer – 2024 Letter Accepting Louise Haigh’s Resignation

    Keir Starmer – 2024 Letter Accepting Louise Haigh’s Resignation

    The text of the letter from Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, to Louise Haigh following her resignation as Transport Secretary.

    Text of Letter (in .pdf format)

  • Louise Haigh – 2024 Speech on Maritime Policy

    Louise Haigh – 2024 Speech on Maritime Policy

    The speech made by Louise Haigh, the Secretary of State for Transport, in London on 17 September 2024.

    Thank you very much, it’s fantastic to be here at the launch of London International Shipping Week. Where better to deliver my first maritime address as Secretary of State than at the IMO.

    Not only the global seat of maritime governance where shipping has been made safer, our seas cleaner, this industry more secure. But an enduring symbol, 75 years on from its creation, of this city’s role in maritime’s past, present and future.

    It’s why London hosts the premier event in the shipping calendar, with 30,000 visitors attending over 300 events for London International Shipping Week last year. Although being a girl from Yorkshire, I should say this is about the whole UK maritime sector as well. Last year we celebrated progress made, confronted challenges ahead and continued the vital work of future-proofing this historic sector.

    With like-minded states and dynamic businesses, we turned partnership into progress – accelerating work on green corridors, signing memorandums of understanding to explore the opportunities of AI, and showcasing new fully electric vehicles on the Thames.

    All positive steps, which, next year, we absolutely must work together to turn into giant leaps. Because this sector faces more change in the next 30 years than it’s seen in the past 3,000 and all of us, government and industry, must be ready.

    Take new technology, which will transform how maritime is powered. It will end the sector’s reliance on dirty energy. A reliance that has seen domestic shipping emissions outpace those of buses, coaches and rail combined.

    Already, in this very building, the global community has agreed decarbonisation targets by around 2050. And over the coming years, Britain will continue to take the lead. Not only delivering our mission to make this country a clean energy superpower, but rallying the world to ensure those targets don’t slip from view. And we’ll explore the possibilities of autonomous shipping, never to replace human passion and experience, but to achieve levels of productivity and safety currently beyond our capabilities.

    So, whether it’s hydrogen or battery power, green corridors or smart shipping, I will build on what’s come before and go further, much further, move faster – and match the ambition that’s already being displayed in our world leading sector – setting this industry on course towards a future of cleaner growth.

    Steering us towards that future will be maritime’s workforce – over 200,000 strong, touching every part of the country. They are the lifeblood of this sector.

    I know that working at sea isn’t just a job. My uncle left home at 16 – he ran away from home – to join the Merchant Navy. My grandma didn’t even know where he’d gone – but it changed his life forever. It gave him ambitions and opportunities that he couldn’t have otherwise achieved.

    Because a maritime career represents the opportunity to be part of something bigger than yourself. We have all seen that on display, when maritime workers were tasked with getting this island nation through a pandemic, while much of the economy ground to a halt. They facilitated our global trade, almost all of which flows through our ports, before lining supermarket shelves, filling hospital stock rooms and landing on our doorsteps.

    Maritime’s future depends on that workforce and on growing the pool of talent that it draws from. It means we can create a more resilient and innovative sector, proudly diverse in gender, background and skills.

    It’s a future where coders and data analysts rub shoulders with engineers and seafarers – all choosing maritime as the place to launch and sustain a career. But that requires progress, real progress, on making the sector a more attractive place to work and stay.

    It has now been over 2 years since the P&O Ferries scandal shook this country and the maritime sector. Clearly, not enough has been done since. I know many of you in this room will have been equally as shocked by those events. And this government is determined to start to put injustices like these right with our plan to ‘Make Work Pay’.

    We’ll end the worst fire and rehire practices that undercut the rights and protections of workers, and undermine confidence in our economy. Because we know that the way to grow our economy, and to make maritime a more attractive home for a new generation of seafarers, is through a partnership between business and working people, which can be a rising tide that lifts all of us, in every corner of the country.

    Today you have my assurance that I will place this sector at the heart of this government’s plan for a decade of national renewal. Economic growth. A clean energy superpower. Breaking barriers to opportunity. Whatever this government’s mission – maritime is at the heart of it.

    We’ll harness London’s world leading strengths in maritime law and insurance. We’ll support exciting green projects up and down the country. And we’ll breathe new economic life into our vital coastal communities and ports.

    Friends, I believe maritime’s best days aren’t confined to history but lie ahead. So, tonight, let’s fire the starting gun – or break the champagne – for London International Shipping Week 2025, making it the biggest and most impactful to date.

    I know that many of you feel that maritime’s outsized contribution to our economy sails under the radar and that many of you don’t always get the recognition you deserve. But as Transport Secretary, I will champion you and this sector at every opportunity. And work with you, day in day out, not simply to secure maritime’s future, but the future of our economy and our country too.

  • Mark Harper – 2023 Speech to Conservative Party Conference

    Mark Harper – 2023 Speech to Conservative Party Conference

    The speech made by Mark Harper, the Secretary of State for Transport, in Manchester on 2 October 2023.

    Conference, thank you. It’s great to be with you in Manchester and as Transport Secretary, I’m supported by a great ministerial team who join us today: Jesse Norman, Huw Merriman, Richard Holden and Charlotte Vere. I’m proud to lead a team working every day to keep Britain moving forward.

    I’d also like to welcome two special guests.

    Our newest Member of Parliament, Uxbridge’s Steve Tuckwell. Steve’s campaign to stop Labour inspired us all.

    And also joining us, Susan Hall, the Conservative candidate for Mayor of London, the only person who can defeat Sadiq Khan, cancel his ULEZ expansion, and turn London blue again.

    When we arrived in the Department last October, we faced industrial action across our railways.

    By March, we’d resolved the dispute at Network Rail, meaning that rail infrastructure is always available, crucial for moving freight.

    But the union barons at the RMT and ASLEF have since refused to let their members on train operators have a say on the fair offers on the table.

    They don’t care how many thousands of pounds their members lose in pay, as long as Mick Whelan still sits on Labour’s National Executive Committee, pulling Sir Keir’s strings.

    That’s why Labour refuse to criticise the continued industrial action which achieves nothing but disrupting hardworking businesses and people who just want to get on. They take money from the pockets of ordinary people who could never dream of a train drivers’ wage. The union barons seek to inconvenience people, but all they do is risk resentment towards rail workers, and they put their own industry at risk.

    Now make no mistake conference, I’m proud of what we Conservatives have done to support our railways.

    We’ve invested over £100 billion to transform services, with millions of passengers across the country travelling on new trains on upgraded tracks. In 13 years, Labour electrified just 63 miles of railway track. We’ve delivered over 1,200 miles.

    The choice is clear: Labour-backed strikes, or Conservative investment.

    Either we make the hard but necessary long-term decisions to get a financially sustainable modern railway, or we follow Labour’s lazy ideological approach, forking out yet more money from the public purse for no benefit to passengers.

    Now conference, for people in my rural constituency, and, indeed, across our country, buses are the backbone of public transport, and this Conservative Government is backing our buses.

    We have invested over £3.5 billion in our bus network since March 2020, including over £1 billion to help local areas make bus services more frequent, more reliable, better coordinated, and cheaper.

    The evidence is clear. In Labour-run Wales and London, bus fares increased last year. In Scotland, the SNP put them up. In England outside London, thanks to the Conservative fare cap, bus fares actually went down, helping with the cost of living.

    In the maritime sector, which carries 95% of UK goods, we are investing to guarantee its sustainable future.

    In aviation, with our Jet Zero, we’re ensuring we can cut pollution, whilst still growing our economy and helping people go on well-deserved holidays – with the Prime Minister’s clear commitment last month to no new punitive taxes that discourage people from flying.

    But Conference, for most people, the most important mode of transport remains the car, the van, the lorry, or the motorbike.

    From listening to certain corners of the metropolitan bubble, you would think owning a car was immoral, a dirty habit, an optional extra in peoples’ lives.

    Politicians like Sir Keir Starmer, Sadiq Khan and Mark Drakeford are only interested in the short term, taking the easy way out and making decisions that hammer motorist to seek praise from social media and London newspapers.

    It’s the Conservative Party which is proudly pro-car. We are on track to a future where zero emission vehicles, powered by batteries, hydrogen or other clean technologies mean we keep driving, but powered in a way that’s fit for the future.

    And this Conservative Government will make the hard, but necessary long-term decisions to get the country on the right path for the future – even if some people don’t like it.

    What a contrast with Labour.

    In London, Sadiq Khan’s ULEZ expansion is a Labour tax on the poorest drivers.

    And Conference, he wants to go further. His plans for road pricing would see every driver pay per mile driven, no matter how clean their car is.

    And in Labour-run Wales, Sir Keir Starmer’s “blueprint for…Labour”, there are blanket 20 mile an hour speed limits, an ideological ban on road building and plans to charge people to drive on the M4. And just last week, they let slip their plans for road charging across Wales.

    And it isn’t just in Wales or in London. Right across our country, there is a Labour-backed movement to make cars harder to use, to make driving more expensive, and to remove your freedom to get from A to B how you want.

    Conference, it is time for Conservatives to act.

    And today, I am proud to announce a comprehensive plan to back drivers.

    First, I am calling time on the misuse of so-called 15-minute cities. There’s nothing wrong with making sure people can walk or cycle to the shops or school. That’s traditional town planning.

    But what is different, what is sinister, and what we shouldn’t tolerate, is the idea that local councils can decide how often you go to the shops, and that they can ration who uses the roads and when, and that they police it all with CCTV.

    So today, I am announcing that the Government will investigate what options we have in our toolbox to restrict over-zealous use of traffic management measures including cutting off councils from the DVLA database if they don’t follow the rules.

    The Prime Minister has already tasked me to conduct a review into Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, and that’s ongoing – building on my decision to ensure no Government money funds them.

    It can’t be right that these schemes are imposed without proper local consent, so we will change the guidance to ensure that councils properly listen to what local people say.

    But, Conference, we’ll go further.

    20 mph zones are a good way to protect schools, for quiet residential streets, or areas that are becoming rat runs. But for some councils, and indeed for some countries, they are yet another way to punish drivers, as blanket measures. The evidence is clear – this makes little difference, may actually increase pollution, and risks motorists ignoring 20mph zones where they are needed.

    So, we will change the DfT’s guidance, requiring councils to only use 20mph zones where there’s a good reason, and underlining that 30mph is the default speed limit on urban roads.

    It’s also time to put a stop to some councils using unfair fines as a money-spinner.

    We will put a stop to councils profiting from traffic offences, clawing back revenue, and removing any temptation to exploit you for profit.

    At the same time, we will make it easier for people to switch to cleaner driving in a sensible way, as the Prime Minister set out recently.

    There’s much more. We will make it easier and cheaper to drive and ride, to park and to use transport sensibly.

    To cut down on jams, we’ll tune up traffic lights to help junctions flow and restrict 24-hour bus lanes where they aren’t appropriate.

    And our plan includes a new national parking platform, ending the need to install numerous apps just to park your car as well as a comprehensive package of measures to help councils tackle the menace of potholes.

    Now, conference, 36 years ago, Margaret Thatcher inspired a working-class boy from Swindon to join the Conservative Party. And a year later, she told us how we have a “full repairing lease” on our country and on our environment.

    Since 2010, Conservatives in Government have worked to deliver her vision.

    That working-class boy from Swindon was me, and I make no apology for working to make our transport fit for the future, playing my part in delivering her legacy.

    Conference, as a Conservative, I want to give people choice, to make their lives easier, not to force them to travel in a certain way, or at a certain time.

    We can make it easier and more convenient for people to use cleaner cars but forcing no one to give up the cars they have today.

    We can make it safer for people to choose to walk or cycle, but without forcing drivers off the roads.

    And we can cut our carbon emissions without taxing poorer motorists off the roads, or without CCTV-enforced council rationing.

    Conference, we are at a fork in the road.

    Labour will continue with their same failed approach.

    Taxing the poorest motorists.

    Political speed limits.

    Banning road building.

    Labour would put Just Stop Oil in the driving seat, they’d fix a camera on every lamppost, put a hand in every pocket.

    Instead, we stand for freedom, to travel how you want. The sensible approach to protecting our environment.

    We stand for making the hard, but necessary, long-term decisions to get the country on the right path for the future.

    The choice is clear.

    We have a long-term plan to back drivers. Labour has a long-term plan to tax drivers. We are on the side of hard-working people; Labour wants to drive them off the roads altogether.

    We will take the difficult decisions to put our country on the road to the future, Labour will condemn us to the slow lane.

    That is why I back Susan Hall in London, Andy Street in the West Midlands, Ben Houchen in the Tees Valley and our fantastic Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, to lead us into the next election and to win.

    Conference, thank you very much indeed.

  • Huw Merriman – 2023 Statement on the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands

    Huw Merriman – 2023 Statement on the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands

    The statement made by Huw Merriman, the Minister of State at the Department for Transport, in the House of Commons on 17 July 2023.

    The Integrated Rail Plan, published in November 2021, set out a £96 billion investment to benefit the midlands and the north, the largest ever Government investment in the railways. The Government stand by the conclusions of the plan and continue to consider it the most effective way of providing rail benefits to the north and the midlands.

    As part of the plan, we also committed to take forward a study to consider the most effective way to run HS2 trains to Leeds.

    I am today publishing the terms of reference for this work, which will include consideration of station capacity at Leeds, and the implications of different options on the wider network.

    The proposals set out in the Integrated Rail Plan bring communities and labour markets together and will support growing our economy in towns and cities across the nation.

    The work in the study will consider a range of options and take account of: value for money; affordability; deliverability and timescales; economic development; disruption to passengers; and local views and evidence. The study will be extensive and will take two years to complete.

    As this work progresses, we intend to review the case for dropping certain options, taking account of evidence gathered, particularly on costs, affordability, benefits and value for money.

    In addition, the Transport Select Committee on 13 July published the Government’s response to its report on the Integrated Rail Plan. In response to the following recommendation on Bradford:

    The Government should reconsider the case for the development of a new station in Bradford. The development of the St James’s Market station would not only enhance rail connectivity in the North, allowing further investment in the city, but also provide further opportunities for rail development in Bradford after the ‘core pipeline’ of IRP upgrades take place. (Paragraph 63)

    I have confirmed that the Government accept this recommendation.

    The Government stand by the conclusions of the Integrated Rail Plan on Bradford, and the benefits that plan brings to the city. However, in the light of this recommendation, a re-assessment of the evidence for better connecting Bradford and the case for a new station will now form part of the Northern Powerhouse Rail development programme and the HS2 to Leeds study.

    The Government’s approaches for Leeds and Bradford remain those that were set out in the Integrated Rail Plan, and the undertaking of this work does not guarantee further interventions will be agreed or progressed.

    The Government remain committed to the Integrated Rail Plan’s £96 billion envelope and expect that additions or changes to the core IRP pipeline will be affordable within that. Any options that are progressed, including those that would exceed the £96 billion envelope, will be subject to the established adaptive approach, as set out in the IRP.

  • Mark Harper – 2023 Statement on Plans for New Smart Motorways Cancelled

    Mark Harper – 2023 Statement on Plans for New Smart Motorways Cancelled

    The statement made by Mark Harper, the Secretary of State for Transport, in the House of Commons on 17 April 2023.

    The government has announced that all plans for new smart motorways have been cancelled.

    This will mean that the 11 schemes already paused from the second Road Investment Strategy (2020 to 2025) and the 3 earmarked for construction during the third Road Investment Strategy (2025 to 2030) will be removed from the government’s road-building plans in recognition of the current lack of public confidence felt by drivers and cost pressures.

    While no new stretches will be converted, work on the M56 J6 to J8 and M6 J21a to J26 will go ahead as planned given they are already over three-quarters constructed.

    The government and National Highways will continue to invest £900 million in further safety improvements on existing smart motorways. This includes installing stopped vehicle detection technology on every all lane running smart motorway which has now been completed, adding an additional 150 emergency areas across the network by 2025 and investing in giving motorists clear advice when using existing smart motorways.

    The government will also continue to deliver against its other commitments as set out in its response to the Transport Select Committee in January 2022.

    This government will continue to ensure that our roads remain among the safest in the world – helping drivers not just to be safe, but crucially, to feel safe and confident when driving.

    The following schemes have been cancelled

    RIS2 (2020 to 2025) paused schemes

    New all lane running smart motorways

    M3 junctions 9 to 14

    M40/M42 interchange

    M62 junctions 20 to 25

    M25 junctions 10 to 16

    Dynamic hard shoulder to all lane running conversions

    M1 junctions 10 to 13

    M4/M5 interchange (M4 junctions 19 to 20 and M5 junctions 15 to 17)

    M6 junctions 4 to 5

    M6 junctions 5 to 8

    M6 junctions 8 to 10a

    M42 junctions 3a to 7

    M62 junctions 25 to 30

    RIS3 (2025 to 2030) pipeline schemes

    M1 North Leicestershire

    M1 junctions 35a to 39 Sheffield to Wakefield

    M6 junctions 19 to 21a Knutsford to Croft

  • Alan Brown – 2023 Speech on Improving Rail Services

    Alan Brown – 2023 Speech on Improving Rail Services

    The speech made by Alan Brown, the SNP spokesperson on transport, in the House of Commons on 20 March 2023.

    While the Secretary of State was finishing writing his statement before coming to the House, Avanti was doing what it does best—causing more chaos to the west coast. I was glad that I got the London North Eastern Railway down, rather than Avanti. Avanti was far and away the worst-performing company for cancellations in period 11 and the second worst in period 12, according to Office of Rail and Road tables. It was beaten in period 12 only by TransPennine Express. Coincidentally, both franchises involve FirstGroup. By contrast, ScotRail is by far the best performing major operator for cancellation percentages, and it runs eight times as many trains as Avanti.

    Since the much heralded Government intervention, ORR data for periods 8 to 11 shows that the number of trains arriving on time is lower, and hovers around 32% to 35%. The Secretary of State talks about facts, but the fact is that still only a third of trains are arriving on time. Does he really think that merits coming to the Despatch Box and bragging about a turnaround? Even on Avanti’s 15-minute threshold for arrival, performance has been consistently lower than in earlier years. In period 10, a quarter of trains arrived outside that 15-minute window. Period 11 was only marginally better. Yet again, ScotRail significantly outperforms it. LNER has had its own issues, but it still outperforms Avanti by some distance. There is no shareholder dividend system for ScotRail or LNER. Despite the Secretary of State saying that there is ideological battle on this issue, why are the Government still so opposed to nationalising rail companies and giving them public sector ownership?

    The Secretary of State mentioned discounted ticketing, yet no one north of Preston benefits from that, so passengers in Scotland are paying full whack for services that barely exist to cross-subsidise tickets for trains that stop 200 miles away. Scottish commuters have seen plans to shelve the Golborne link for HS2, with no replacement identified, and further delays to the Euston link. Even when HS2 comes into being, our trains will be slower on the west coast main line than Avanti’s are at present. Despite the rhetoric about rhetoric, is it not the case that this Government just do not care?

    Mr Harper

    Let me deal with those questions in order. First, it important to focus on the facts. To take today’s Avanti service, 95.5% of services were running within 15 minutes of their planned time. There was a service issue today, which I know at least one hon. Member was affected by. There was a Network Rail points failure between Carstairs and Carlisle, which resulted in the delay and part-cancellation of two services, including the 0939 from Lancaster, which started instead from Preston and arrived three minutes late at Euston. It is interesting that the issue was caused by the bit of the industry that is, of course, owned by the taxpayer, so that does not demonstrate the hon. Gentleman’s case for nationalisation.

    Secondly, on timekeeping, I said in my statement that Avanti’s punctuality was now within the pack of the train operating companies, but that it was at the bottom of the pack and there was more work still to do. I was very clear that Avanti has improved its performance but it is not where it needs to be, which is why I have sufficient confidence only to extend the contract until October. Both I and the Rail Minister have been clear that Avanti needs to continue to deliver improved performance.

    On LNER, on the east coast, in my view one of the reasons why good performance is delivered on that route is that there are open-access operators providing competition and choice to passengers. It is important for us to bear that in mind when we think about the future shape of the rail service.

    On the hon. Gentleman’s points about HS2, because I have to consider the interests of the taxpayer and the fact that inflation is significantly high at the moment, I had to make difficult decisions. The choice I made was to continue delivering phase 1, in order to ensure we deliver it as promised; to have a short delay to phase 2a, to continue to deliver phase 2b on track; and to look again at delivering a station at Euston, within the budget that has been set. I think those were the right decisions to deliver improved infrastructure, to benefit the country over decades to come.