Flybmi

Debate between Lord Blunkett and Baroness Sugg

Monday 18th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Sugg]

I agree with my noble friend. It is a challenging time to be in the aviation industry at the moment for many reasons. We are seeing airlines having to address those challenges. Ultimately, they are commercial enterprises, and the share price will be dictated by demand and their profitability. Through the aviation strategy consultation, we are looking to support the industry. The UK aviation sector is incredibly important to the UK economy, providing £22 billion per year and hundreds of thousands of jobs. We want to make sure that our aviation strategy helps it continue in its success.

[Lord Blunkett (Lab)]

My Lords, I have a tangential interest. I know that the Minister, for whom I have enormous respect, has an interest in what are called in technical jargon passengers with reduced mobility; that is, those who require assistance. Is she satisfied that the industry and government are doing enough to help those who will be stranded? Quite a number of them are extremely worried.

[Baroness Sugg]

I thank the noble Lord for his question. Yes, we are satisfied that we are doing everything we can to help those passengers who are stranded. The CAA and the department are working closely with airlines. Detailed information on that is on the website. As always, we need to make sure that we pay special attention to PRMs, as they are called, to ensure that they receive the support they need to get home.

Railways: Timetables

Debate between Lord Blunkett and Baroness Sugg

Tuesday 17th July 2018 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Sugg]

My Lords, I certainly agree that passengers expect an adequate, affordable service with capacity, and we are working towards that. A record £47.9 billion is being invested in our railways over the next control period, which should bring improvements to connectivity across the country.

[Lord Blunkett (Lab)]

My Lords, here is a bit of a googly but the Minister will be well up for it. Given that the rationale for the substantial worsening of running times from Sheffield to St Pancras and intermediate stations was the large increase in train availability for London and the south-east, will she ask the inquiry now to restore the running times from Sheffield to London so that we can have a service back?

[Baroness Sugg]

My Lords, I am not sure I recognise that as the reason for the issues in Sheffield. We are investing in the biggest upgrade of the line since it was completed in 1870. We are working closely with Network Rail on the upgrade and we expect to deliver it in 2020, which will improve train times. We are working continually with the train operating company to ensure that the new timetable implementation is delivered successfully.

Railways: East Coast Main Line

Debate between Lord Blunkett and Baroness Sugg

Wednesday 23rd May 2018 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Sugg]

My Lords, I certainly reassure my noble friend that we will keep a close eye on developments with LNER. My honourable friend the rail Minister and the Secretary of State will work closely with the operator to ensure that the interests of passengers are protected. I have not been to Lincoln for some time, so look forward to doing so when the train services start.

[Lord Blunkett (Lab)]

My Lords, while we all rejoice for the noble Lord and the people of Lincoln, is it not perverse that £7 billion spent to improve services in the south-east has not only resulted in temporary chaos but significantly worsened the timings of trains coming on the east Midlands line from Sheffield through Derby and Leicester, so that they have now lost eight minutes on the journey time to benefit those in the south-east? No wonder people voted for Brexit in the north.

[Baroness Sugg]

My Lords, the Government are investing significantly in northern transport. With the setting up of Transport for the North, there is now a strong voice to help us allocate funding up there. On the timetable, to which I believe the noble Lord refers, we have seen some big changes in the past week: the biggest change to rail timetables in a generation. That timetable change will deliver improved passenger services across the country—in both the south and the north.

Airports: Passenger Assistance

Debate between Lord Blunkett and Baroness Sugg

Thursday 3rd May 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Blunkett (Lab)]

My Lords, I beg to move the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper and draw attention to my declaration in the register of interests.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Transport (Baroness Sugg) (Con)]

My Lords, we want to see an improvement in service for all passengers requiring assistance when travelling through our airports. We have seen progress in recent years through the introduction of the CAA annual reporting, but there is certainly more we can do in this area. Through the ongoing work on our aviation strategy, the department and the CAA will work with campaign groups, airports, airlines and ground handlers to produce and implement new and innovative policy proposals.

[Lord Blunkett]

My Lords, many in this House will be familiar with the experience that the renowned security correspondent of the BBC, Frank Gardner, had at Heathrow recently. I know that the Minister is both committed and energetic on this issue, so can she reassure us that in the event of Britain leaving the EU—in the event—we will be totally committed to maintaining and improving on EU Regulation 1107 and to ensuring that we get everyone to co-operate? It is only through partnership between airports, airlines and service providers that we can put people on equal terms and overcome the indignity and lack of independence that Frank Gardner experienced.

[Baroness Sugg]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for raising this issue and I pay tribute to the work he has done over many years in this area. On his point about regulations following our exit from the European Union, we will absolutely not fall below current standards set by EU regulations—in this case Regulations 1107 and 261, which will be retained in UK law. I absolutely affirm my commitment to addressing the issues in this area. In our Next Steps document for our aviation policy, published last month, we have committed to make significant improvements, such as helping to raise awareness of the assistance already provided at airports, reviewing the assistance performance standards for airports and airlines and introducing an accredited nationwide accessibility training scheme in an effort to improve the assistance already offered.

Transport for the North

Debate between Lord Blunkett and Baroness Sugg

Thursday 18th January 2018 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Sugg]

My Lords, the strategic road between London and Newcastle will be upgraded to a full motorway by the end of the year, but I am aware that there are still issues north of Newcastle on the way up to Scotland. As I mentioned before, one of the strategic development corridors includes the east coast of Scotland and will be looking at exactly this project. I am aware that it may be some months before we see the final plan, and I will certainly see if we can take action quicker.

[Lord Blunkett (Lab)]

My Lords, I have no intention of storming out of your Lordships’ House, but I share my noble friend Lord Prescott’s concern that strategic plans that have no chance of being implemented mislead people in the north of England into believing that something is about to happen. If the linked rail and road across the Pennines linking Hull, Sheffield, Leeds, Bradford and Newcastle is to become a reality, it will take real government investment. Will the Minister speak to the beleaguered Transport Secretary about turning mythology into reality?

[Baroness Sugg]

I am grateful to the noble Lord for his continued presence, unlike the noble Lord, Lord Prescott, who was not able to stay for the full launch of the plan. We have worked carefully with people from across the north on ensuring that we get the right balance of powers here, and we are looking forward to seeing the plan. The Secretary of State has ultimate accountability to Parliament, and with his statutory role, it is right that he makes the final decisions. We will be considering that project carefully, and we will be ready to make the investment.