Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the extent to which Midland Main Line services will speed up journey times for travellers in Leicester and the East Midlands, as pledged in the Integrated Rail Plan.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Electrification of the Midland Main Line will allow reduction of intercity journey times for the East Midlands by enabling HS2 East services to call at cities on the MML route.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the proposed improvements to Leicester station and the accompanying benefits of urban agglomeration.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The regeneration of Leicester Station is a £22.6m project led by Leicester City Council, to be delivered through £17.6m of Government Levelling Up funding and a £5m contribution from the Council. Plans for the Station include transforming the ticket hall, creating a new entrance, and relocating the taxi rank by 2024. This will increase station capacity, drive economic growth and improve passenger experience.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the cost of speeding up the Midland Main Line service for travellers in Leicester and the East Midlands, as pledged in the Integrated Rail Plan; and how much of that cost will be met through new funding.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Journey time improvements for the East Midlands will be delivered through the planned HS2 East Core Network, which has a provision of £12.8bn (2019 prices) within the Integrated Rail Plan. This investment is all newly committed funding, and none of it is reallocated from other departments.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the estimated cost is of decarbonising the Midland Main Line service, including through Leicester, as pledged in the Integrated Rail Plan; and how much of that cost will be met through new funding.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Within the £96 billion set out in the Integrated Rail Plan, £1.4 billion (2019 prices) has been allowed for electrifying the Midland Main Line. This investment is all newly committed funding, and none of it is reallocated from other departments.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the Government's timescale is for electrifying the Midland Main Line service, including Leicester, as pledged in the Integrated Rail Plan.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
As stated in the Integrated Rail Plan, electrification of the Midland Main Line to Leicester, Nottingham and Sheffield is currently planned for around 2030.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with local authority leaders in Coventry, Leicester and Nottingham on the potential restoration of a rail link between those cities.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Secretary of State regularly meets with local authority leaders to discuss transport issues in their areas.
Midlands Connect has prepared an Outline Strategic Business Case for the Coventry, Leicester, Nottingham scheme, and I contributed to the launch event for this proposal by video early this year.
The recently published Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) sets out the long-term plan for rail investment in the North of England and the Midlands, the Coventry, Leicester, Nottingham proposal will need to be considered with reference to the recommendations set out in the IRP.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits for (a) housing supply and (b) the Government's levelling up agenda of introducing a Coventry, Leicester, Nottingham rail link.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Midlands Connect has developed a strategic outline business case for reinstating direct rail links between Coventry and Leicester/Nottingham. This includes consideration of the benefits regarding housing supply and contribution to the levelling up agenda.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with local leaders on the (a) contribution to the economy of building the Midlands Rail Hub and (b) the impact of that matter on local communities.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Secretary of State regularly meets with local leaders to discuss transport issues in their areas.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect of Midlands Rail Hub on (a) levelling up towns and cities in the Midlands and (b) the economies of (i) the East Midlands, (ii) Leicestershire and (iii) Leicester.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Following release of funding in July 2020, Network Rail is developing an Outline Business Case for the Midlands Rail Hub which will consider the impact of the scheme on the economy and productivity of the region.
The recently published Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) sets out the long-term plan for rail investment in the North of England and the Midlands, the development of the proposals for the MRH will now need to reflect the recommendations set out in the IRP.
Asked by: Claudia Webbe (Independent - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits for communities and housing supply of delivering Midlands Rail Hub improvements.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Network Rail is developing an Outline Business Case for the Midlands Rail Hub. This will consider the contribution of the scheme to the Government's housing growth agenda in communities that will be served by Midlands Rail Hub.
The recently published Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) sets out the long-term plan for rail investment in the North of England and the Midlands, the development of the proposals for the MRH will now need to reflect the recommendations set out in the IRP.