Oral Answers to Questions

Kanishka Narayan Excerpts

Thursday 26th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Chris Curtis (Milton Keynes North) (Lab)]

1. What steps she is taking to help ensure that the transport system supports economic growth.

[Kanishka Narayan (Vale of Glamorgan) (Lab)]

14. What steps she is taking to help ensure that the transport system supports economic growth.

[The Secretary of State for Transport (Heidi Alexander)]

Economic growth is this Government’s top priority, and the Chancellor put growth right at the heart of her spending review, announcing more than £92 billion of capital investment in transport infrastructure to give people access to jobs and opportunities. This includes long-term funding for our largest city regions, billions of pounds of investment in roads, hundreds of millions of pounds for walking and cycling, and delivering transformative projects such as the trans-Pennine route upgrade and East West Rail. This will make a real difference to people’s lives up and down the country, now and in the future, showing the difference a Labour Government make.

[Heidi Alexander]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that matter with me in person a few days ago and for sending me further information on the report and the research. Trams do have the potential to support growth at much lower cost than heavy rail, but he is right that the cost per kilometre of new tramline is much more expensive in the UK than elsewhere in Europe. I have asked my officials to look into what we can do in this area as we look to unlock growth across the UK.

[Kanishka Narayan]

We have a proud community in St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan that is both growing and thriving thanks to the economic opportunity provided by the Bro Tathan enterprise zone. Will the Secretary of State work with Welsh colleagues to progress funding for a new railway station in St Athan to support that growth and provide dignity for the residents?

[Heidi Alexander]

As we have seen in so many areas, the previous Government may have made promises about this station, but they allocated no feasibility or development funding to get the project moving. Through the spending review and infrastructure strategy, this Government will provide at least £445 million of rail enhancements over the next 10 years to deliver long-term infrastructure needs in Wales, including new stations. Details of how this funding will be allocated will be announced in due course.