Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Department for Transport

Oral Answers to Questions

Andy McDonald Excerpts
Thursday 22nd January 2015

(9 years, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lord McLoughlin Portrait Mr McLoughlin
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I am concerned if work that has been started on a project has not been completed. I will contact Sir Peter Hendy of TfL and write to my right hon. Friend.

Andy McDonald Portrait Andy McDonald (Middlesbrough) (Lab)
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Last week, a disabled passenger at Middlesbrough railway station was trapped on platform 2 because of the failure of the lift and had to travel to Saltburn at the end of the line to get to platform 1. Will the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, the hon. Member for Devizes (Claire Perry), encourage Network Rail to accelerate its programme of investment in Middlesbrough railway station, which is much overdue, and meet me to discuss the acceleration of the direct service from Middlesbrough to London? I wrote to her many weeks ago and I have not had a response.

Lord McLoughlin Portrait Mr McLoughlin
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I am sure that my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary will be more than willing to meet the hon. Gentleman. With regard to the particular problem that he described today, obviously, when a lift breaks down it creates problems. That can happen occasionally and I very much regret it when it does. I think that Middlesbrough station will benefit from the new franchise that we have let, with more services coming to London.