Oral Answers to Questions

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 19th April 2018 Commons Chamber

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

Reopening Middlewich railway station to passengers is a matter of crucial importance to many of my constituents. What progress is being made on developing the business case for that?

[Joseph Johnson]

I know there is strong local support for improvements to the rail network in Cheshire. I am pleased to confirm that the Cheshire and Warrington local enterprise partnership is in the process of establishing a working group with local authority partners and Network Rail to examine the feasibility of reopening the mid-Cheshire link railway line, including Middlewich station, in my hon. Friend’s constituency, and that the Department has offered to provide advice.

Oral Answers to Questions

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 30th November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

The first thing to remind the hon. Gentleman of is that London Overground is also a franchise—Labour always conveniently forgets that. It is run by Arriva. The other thing to say is that the document we published yesterday on the new south eastern franchise involves far greater additional benefits for passengers than was ever the case in the Mayor’s business plan for that franchise. The last point to make is that I have extended to TfL and the Mayor the same offer that I made and is now in force in the north for a partnership in operating, designing and managing the franchise, but that offer is yet to be accepted.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

Cheshire East has the highest gross value added in the north. My constituents are extremely grateful for the Middlewich bypass funding, which is key to continuing this economic growth and delivering even more, as is the need to improve junction 17 of the M6 nearby. Will Ministers kindly give consideration to including that as part of the north’s emerging strategic transport plan?

[Chris Grayling]

I absolutely hear what my hon. Friend says. As someone who used to live close to that area, I understand the issues she raised, and I am sure Transport for the North will listen to her comments today. It is finalising its plans. As Cheshire and mid-Cheshire grow—the towns there have expanded considerably in recent years—there is a need to make sure that the infrastructure is fit for purpose, which is why my earlier comments about the mid-Cheshire line are also important.

Transport in the North

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Monday 6th November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to take part in this debate. As I have said to many previous Transport Ministers, I have 10 railway stations, the largest port in the country and an international airport in my constituency. We therefore deserve better service from the Department than we have received in recent years. However, there is no doubt that the northern powerhouse has been a focus for the Government, and it is delivering some major investment into the north of England. We should be fair to the Government and acknowledge that.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

My hon. Friend is making an excellent point. Will he join me in expressing appreciation for the recent investment committed for the Middlewich bypass in my constituency? We have been over 20 years in the waiting. It will not only relieve congestion in the area but open up land to bring new employment into the area in the form of more than 2,000 jobs.

Road Infrastructure

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Wednesday 5th July 2017 Westminster Hall

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

I want to draw the Minister’s attention to something that I hope is already front and centre of his desk: the well progressed application for a Middlewich eastern bypass. It has been a 30-year wait, and the support in Middlewich and beyond is strong. It would open up employment land for 2,000 jobs, which would help to transform the local and wider economy. It would reduce congestion, and not only through Middlewich. That congestion is chronic, and not only at peak times. The bypass would improve transport efficiency from the M6 across that part of Cheshire to the west. Middlewich is a severe bottleneck, which is holding back economic development in the area.

I am grateful that the Government granted business case funding last year under the fast-track scheme of the large local major transport schemes programme. The business case was produced this spring. As time prohibits my speaking about it in detail now, I hope that the Minister will allow me to hand him an executive summary of the business case after the debate. It was produced by Cheshire East Council with the support of the local enterprise partnership, and it was the only one proposed by that large unitary authority.

The council leader and I were due to discuss the matter in a meeting with the Minister’s predecessor—now the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, my hon. Friend the Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Andrew Jones)—before the election intervened. I hope that the Minister will look favourably on the idea of putting such an appointment in his diary soon.

Middlewich is a fine historic town with an aspiration to grow, including by taking in new housing, which the scheme would also support. That is not something that every town in Cheshire wants. The road would also bring benefits by facilitating HS2 construction and operation for the nearby link with Crewe, and the reopening, we hope, of Middlewich railway station for passengers.

I want finally to make a brief mention of Congleton. The Congleton Sports Trust’s vision for the future, following the successful Tour of Britain through Congleton, is a project spearheaded by the deputy mayor, Councillor Suzie Akers Smith, to improve circumnavigation of the town. Obtaining funding for that is proving challenging. The project would facilitate the improvement of infrastructure across the town, and make safe cycling possible—including for children going to school. My key message to the Minister is that for rural and semi-rural areas it is proving challenging to find cycling funding. Will Ministers look at that again?

Oral Answers to Questions

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 15th September 2016 Commons Chamber

[Paul Maynard]

I congratulate the hon. Lady on assiduously carrying out her former brief—who knows when she might return to the Front Bench to continue in that role? She makes an important point about the importance of the line to the east midlands. In my view, the supply chain in the east midlands does not just depend on this one project; the investment in Bombardier’s 660 trains for East Anglia is just one way of safeguarding that particular supply chain. On her wider point about the work on that line, it is worth bearing it in mind that we have already completed 10 km of new line in that stretch; nearly 9 km of existing line has been improved; over 3,000 new piles have been put into place; and there is 10 km of new earthworks, strengthening of key bridges, and new viaducts, particularly at Harpers Brook. Work on this line is ongoing and we are looking to improve capacity through the franchising arrangements.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

I am delighted to hear that the northern powerhouse is alive and well. Does the Minister agree that if it is to have real effect, it is important that investment is made in connectivity not just between the cities of the north, but between the towns? I thank Ministers for the initial investment in the Middlewich bypass, but will they also look at the business case for the reopening of the Middlewich railway station?

[Paul Maynard]

As someone born and bred in a town very close to Middlewich, I am well aware in my 40 years of the importance of the town’s connectivity at the heart of Cheshire. I know that there are good plans for Middlewich’s new station and look forward to working with my hon. Friend on progressing the business case.

Oral Answers to Questions

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 28th April 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr McLoughlin]

The hon. Gentleman is always making the case for traditional railway links, although I know he is not so keen on high-speed links. I certainly commend what is happening at Luton airport. A few months ago I saw the regeneration work going on there, which is proving important for the wider area as well.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

12. What steps he is taking to provide funding for local major transport projects.

[The Minister of State, Department for Transport (Mr Robert Goodwill)]

This Department is providing over £7 billion for the local growth fund, which will fund over 500 local transport projects by the end of the Parliament. As part of that fund, we have launched a new £475 million fund for transformational local transport schemes that are too large for the main allocations, and we have invited local enterprise partnerships to bid by July.

[Fiona Bruce]

The construction of a 20-year awaited bypass for Middlewich would not only alleviate local congestion but open up employment land and thus support the regional economy by helping to create jobs. Will the Minister meet me and Cheshire East Council representatives to discuss the merits of a funding application for this project?

[Mr Goodwill]

I would be happy to have that meeting, particularly if my hon. Friend involves the local enterprise partnership, as LEPs are central to putting these bids together. These types of investments are important for the local regional economy and some of the councillors’ own objectives might be relevant.

Oral Answers to Questions

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 28th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr McLoughlin]

The hon. Lady, as Chairman of the Select Committee, is absolutely right that that is part of what needs to be done. It is part of what is being addressed by David Higgins as chairman of HS2 in his designs for the routes. Also, we wait to see what the National Infrastructure Commission led by Lord Adonis comes out with on the east-west link on HS3.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

Will the Secretary of State give close consideration to how Middlewich railway station can be reopened to passengers? That would facilitate much increased use of the rail line right into Manchester from Crewe and relieve considerable congestion on the M6, which has the support not only of local residents, but of a number of surrounding Members of Parliament.

[Mr McLoughlin]

I am not sure that comes into the HS2 line route development, but I am more than happy to discuss these matters with my hon. Friend, as is the rail Minister, the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for Devizes (Claire Perry). One of the reasons for developing a high-speed rail link is that we need to find a lot more capacity on the existing rail network, and one of the ways we do that is by providing the extra capacity that HS2 will give.

Oral Answers to Questions

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 10th December 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr McLoughlin]

With the greatest charity, I do not think the hon. Gentleman can get away with that. We have been making progress on HS2. In 13 years, Labour only woke up to the HS2 project in year 13. The progress we have made far outstrips the progress the Labour party ever made.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

4. What progress has been made on plans to widen lanes on the M6 between junctions 16 and 19.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Andrew Jones)]

The M6 junctions 16 to 19 smart motorway scheme commenced the start of works in October 2015. Work on the project is progressing well, with preparatory works such as site clearance currently being delivered. The main works for this project are due to commence in early 2016 with a 23-month construction phase, meaning the scheme is expected to complete in early 2018.

[Fiona Bruce]

Several of my constituents living near this stretch of the M6 consider the measures to mitigate the effects of noise and environmental pollution to be inadequate, both in terms of the current impact during the works and the impact of the widened M6 for years to come. Will the Minister meet me to discuss my constituents’ concerns?

[Andrew Jones]

That section of the M6 is very busy: it carries about 132,000 vehicles a day. There are measures that can be taken to help with noise, such as a low noise surface being laid on the road or installing noise barriers. I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend.

Oral Answers to Questions

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 8th May 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr McLoughlin]

There are a number of reasons why it would not be right to allow that to happen, not least because it would be funded directly through the taxpayer. That would put Directly Operated Railways at a great disadvantage compared with other companies in the private sector. The east coast and west coast franchises cannot be compared as they are very different, not least because, at the moment, East Coast runs 155 services a day compared with the 324 services on the west coast line.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

T4. The proposed Congleton link road will help to boost the economy across the east Cheshire region, relieving not only local town congestion, but that along the M6, both of which are frequently described as chronic. It will also improve access to and from Crewe station. Will the Minister consider making Government funding available to fund this vital link road project?

[Mr Goodwill]

I understand that the Cheshire and Warrington local enterprise partnership has submitted a bid for local growth fund funding to support the Congleton link road as part of its strategic economic plan. We are currently assessing the plans and bids submitted by every LEP in England and we hope to be able to make an announcement in July.

Kidsgrove Railway Station

Fiona Bruce Excerpts

Thursday 10th October 2013 Commons Chamber

[Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North) (Lab)]

I am grateful for the opportunity to debate disabled access to Kidsgrove railway station. It is no disrespect to you, Mr Deputy Speaker, if I say that I had rather hoped that Mr Speaker would be in the Chair, because he visited Kidsgrove recently and attended the Kidsgrove youth parliament. I am sure he would have remembered that our young people gave great weight and priority to public transport. Today’s debate is dedicated to them and to those who have set out just how unacceptable it is that, despite the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the subsequent Equality Act 2010, services at Kidsgrove railway station are still not compliant with that disability legislation. The debate is intended to put that right.

I am pleased to see the Minister in his place, and I hope he is as committed to integrated transport as his predecessor was. I wish him well in his new role. I hope that by the time he responds I will have convinced him that when he decides which railway stations across the country are to benefit from the welcome £100 million next phase of the Access for All fund, Kidsgrove railway station should be on the list of successful bids.

I will give a little of the background to the debate. When Kidsgrove moved—it did not actually move, but it moved in terms of boundary changes—back into the parliamentary constituency of Stoke-on-Trent North at the last general election, I looked at the issues that needed my support. I quickly identified the importance of making Kidsgrove railway station accessible to all my constituents. I brought together the county council, the borough council, Kidsgrove town council, the train operating companies and Network Rail to see what we could do. At that meeting, I was really disappointed to find that no one appeared previously to have thought about how to include Kidsgrove station in the bids for Access for All funding that were launched back in 2006.

Many stations had got their bids in and received brand-new disabled facilities. I was particularly impressed by the wonderful architectural design at Denmark Hill station, which had new ramps and had been refurbished. I believe that Long Eaton, in my own region, received £1.6 million to install two new lifts, providing step-free access to both platforms. Sadly, Kidsgrove station did not feature. No bid was made, and as I was told in replies to my letters to the previous Minister, and in meetings that I had with him, the money allocated for station improvements for those with disabilities was all spent.

I then set about arranging further follow-up meetings, with the intention of being ready as soon as the next tranche of funding was announced. It was duly announced that bids were being invited for the 2015 to 2019 period and should be received by 15 November 2013, with a ministerial announcement expected in April 2014. I therefore believe that the debate is timely so that we can leave no stone unturned in securing investment.

I say to the Minister that sometimes it is when one does things for the first time that one really remembers them. If this is his first Adjournment debate in his new role, I hope that he will remember our request.

Why is funding needed in Kidsgrove? It is a town where, in 1777, probably the largest civil engineering project ever carried out in Britain up to that time was completed—the construction of the Harecastle tunnel for the Trent and Mersey canal, which was the combined vision and achievement of James Brindley and Josiah Wedgwood. Subsequently, the railways linked up with the development of the area’s industries. In such a town, one can imagine the frustration that today our otherwise well-kept and much-loved railway station lacks access to three out of four platforms.

I called into the station as recently as last Friday, and I was struck by the staff and volunteers who are working so hard to make the station one of which we can all be proud. Volunteers tend the gardens and the public spaces with great care. They keep it spotlessly clean, freshly painted and well lit—Councillor Elsie Bates is doing a wonderful job. The station has a functioning train information display, ticket machines and notice boards—all the things we would expect. It has a spacious well-laid out car park with bike racks and integrated transport, and there is scope to extend that and adjacent land into a public transport hub—something much championed by local councillors and Jon Honeysett MBE, whom I thank for his work on integrated transport. The station also has efficient and friendly staff, and I saw all those things when I visited last Friday.

The station was rewarded when it deservedly won the best small station award at the community rail awards in 2011. Outside its entrance there are two disabled car parking spaces, clearly marked in yellow paint. If someone is disabled, however, or simply young or old, or if they experience difficulty going up and down the flights of stairs that link the four platforms, perhaps with buggies or heavy luggage, they simply would not be able to get access to three out of the four platforms. That is why it is so important that the Minister responds to this debate.

Services from platforms 2, 3 and 4, to Manchester, Derby, London—including for getting to Parliament—and Crewe, cannot be accessed. To get to Manchester, for example, someone must catch a train to Stoke, change, and board another train to Manchester that goes through Kidsgrove. That leads to the absurd situation whereby anyone who is disabled ends up half an hour later exactly where they started.

It is not only about direct travel to those destinations, but about onward travel, including to the north Wales coast—a particularly popular holiday destination for people from the Potteries—the south coast, Scotland, regional airports, and even to towns and cities with clubs in the premier league and the first division, which are increasingly popular destinations for local football supporters. A further point concerns direct and connecting services to Crewe and south Cheshire, and I thank Jenny Baker of Friends of Sandbach Station, who has gone to great lengths to add her support to our campaign.

[Fiona Bruce (Congleton) (Con)]

I thank the hon. Lady for initiating this debate. Her constituency neighbours mine, and news of her effective campaign has reached the Friends of Sandbach Station, who confirmed to me how much it highlights that this is not an isolated problem. I support—of course—her campaign for Kidsgrove station, but may I say that Sandbach station is in a similar situation? It has flat access to one platform, and footbridge access only to three. Therefore, if someone is disabled, they can travel only to Crewe. We have one advantage over Kidsgrove, however, because we have nine disabled parking spaces, not two. Will the Minister also consider Access for All funding for Sandbach?

[Joan Walley]

The hon. Lady’s intervention is helpful because she makes the point to the Minister that the campaign is supported by Members on both sides of the House. The criteria state that it is important that the investment, when it comes, should not be concentrated in London and the south-east. I hope it comes first to Kidsgrove, and secondly to Sandbach and other connecting stations along the line.

On the criteria, let us look at the disability and age demographics. Staffordshire county council’s profile of adult disability in the county from February 2012 shows that there are a total of 4,540 claimants on incapacity benefit and severe disablement allowance in Newcastle-under-Lyme. Newcastle has the highest number of service users in residential care and supported accommodation in Staffordshire. That and the proportion of the 16-and-over population claiming disability living allowance—6,720 is well above the national average—gives a good indication of the demographic profile, which is an added reason to prioritise Kidsgrove station in the forthcoming bidding round.

No bid will be signed off without meeting the station footfall criteria. I have mentioned the history of the railways. Jobs in the heavy industries that gave us the local railway have declined, but they have been superseded by jobs in other areas. That has resulted in Kidsgrove becoming a key commuter station to Manchester and Stoke-on-Trent and, as we have just heard, Crewe, Sandbach and elsewhere. Accordingly, footfall at Kidsgrove railway station has gone through the roof, from just 32,192 in 2005-06 to 158,478 in 2011-12. Furthermore, passenger numbers are expected to grow at 21% per year in the coming years. Moreover, there is every indication that that trend will continue. Staffordshire county council has agreed in principle to allow the former Kidsgrove goods yard, which it owns, to be used for extra car parking at the station, increasing the number of places from 55 to 200—a 400% increase in spaces for a car park that tends to operate at capacity.

Closer integration of rail and bus services is proposed. Currently, the nearest bus stops are at least 250 yards from the station, and their location is not obvious to rail users. Re-routing the four local bus services to within sight of the station forecourt will greatly benefit the station. I am hopeful that that will happen. Getting the direct service to Manchester airport reinstated would drastically increase footfall at Kidsgrove and could be the subject of another debate in the House. All in all, I believe that the demographics of Kidsgrove match the criteria.

On local support, which has to be shown if the bid is to go ahead, I can tell the House that the proposal is fully supported by Staffordshire county council, Newcastle borough council, Kidsgrove town council, the local enterprise partnership, East Midlands Trains and London Midland Trains. East Midlands Trains confirmed to my office this morning that Kidsgrove station is its top priority in the next tranche of funding. Virgin, which does not go from the station, has indicated that ramped access would have indirect benefits for its services.

In addition, Clough Hall technology school, which has a specialist autism unit, has sent a letter of support to me. I hope the Minister makes a note of this. It states:

“As the only Church of England secondary school in Staffordshire, our conversion, together with the new build, will increase the number of pupils attending the school, especially those travelling in from other areas. We value inclusivity and would welcome a DDA-compliant footbridge which would give access to all platforms, so that pupils with physical disability can travel by train to our school.”

I have had many letters of support, including from Kidsgrove town council, Crewe town council and Kidsgrove Townswomen’s Guild.

On top of that, a significant number of local people support the bid. I thank the mayor of Kidsgrove, Kyle Robinson, and his fellow councillors for helping with the petition, which I am sure will get even more signatures as awareness of the campaign grows. I also refer the Minister to the recent Environmental Audit Committee report, which I helped to produce, on transport and access to public services, and in particular our conclusion that services be joined up and that disabled people should not be excluded.

I have one final point to bring to the Minister’s attention. When I set out on this campaign, I was led to believe that it was down to the train operating company to make the bid for departmental funding. Many meetings and phone calls later, I seem to have gone around in a circle, because I am now told that the remit rests with Network Rail. The local delivery group and county council also have a role, and the Minister has the final say when the submissions have been made. The whole system is at the very least opaque. It leaves me feeling that those stations that sit within a defined passenger transport executive area stand the best chance of a successful bid.

Kidsgrove must not be penalised because the station is a junction on the edge of the Staffordshire-Cheshire local authority borders, under the jurisdiction of no passenger transport executive and a long way down the line from the headquarters of its train operating company, East Midland Trains. It is also unclear from the guidance issued how complete the business case, costings and designs have to be at the time of the actual submission, and who actually has responsibility for submitting the bid. I do not mind whether it is submitted by East Midland Trains, Staffordshire county council, as the highway authority, or Network Rail. They have all indicated support for the bid. What I do mind is that no one understands the process so the bid is not made on time.

The local delivery groups have an enormous say in how the bids are made. I would like to hear what communication the Minister has had with those groups and what more can be done to make sure that when the decision is announced—I understand it will be in April next year—Kidsgrove railway station is on the list.

I notice that part of the criteria is a local commitment to offering matching funds in round 5. Our local authorities are under a great deal of pressure and I do not quite know where that matching funding would come from, but I am happy to sit down with the Minister to discover whether matching funds can come from other Departments to help to make our case. We urgently need Kidsgrove railway station to be compliant with disability legislation.