Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lincoln Jopp and Heidi Alexander

Thursday 11th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Heidi Alexander]

My hon. Friend raises an important issue. She will be aware that we have already legislated to establish national standards and to reform the way that enforcement action can be taken against private hire drivers and vehicles, no matter where they are licensed. Those standards will provide a robust framework to make sure that people are safe wherever they live, work or travel. I believe that drivers and operators should be licensed where they intend to provide services. We are bringing forward a draft taxi and private hire vehicle Bill for pre-legislative scrutiny in this Session, and I would be grateful for the expertise of my hon. Friend’s Committee in looking at that. We want to look at the issue of out-of-area working holistically to make sure that we do not reduce the availability of private hire services for everyone, while also making sure that we have very high standards in place.

[Lincoln Jopp (Spelthorne) (Con)]

T6.   The Secretary of State will be aware of the provision in the national planning policy framework that if a proposed development is within 800 metres of a train station, it is a presumed yes from the planning inspector’s point of view. However, that creates a planning loophole in my Spelthorne constituency because Kempton Park station is the first one outside the Oyster zone, so no matter how many houses are built there, no one will use the station because they will all go one stop up the line to Hampton to travel much more cheaply. As a result of that loophole, Barratt Redrow is planning to put in a planning application to flatten Kempton Park racecourse and put 2,000 homes on it. Will the Secretary of State look at the planning loophole in the NPPF to ensure that it is not abused? How would she feel if she were indirectly responsible for the destruction of an internationally famous, iconic racecourse?

[Heidi Alexander]

It is right to prioritise development in sustainable locations, namely around railway stations. The establishment of Great British Railways will enable us to look more holistically at the way in which the ticketing and fares system works, and we are expanding pay-as-you-go ticketing to give a more seamless experience to people who travel in the south-east. I do not know the details of the planning application the hon. Gentleman refers to. If he wishes to write to me, I will look into it in more detail.

Heathrow: National Airports Review

Debate between Lincoln Jopp and Heidi Alexander

Wednesday 22nd October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lincoln Jopp (Spelthorne) (Con)]

I sympathise with the right hon. Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell); my Spelthorne constituency is on the southern side of Heathrow airport, and the residents of Stanwell Moor, a village of some 520 homes, are half a mile away from the southern perimeter. They have put up with a lot, including appalling behaviour by Uber drivers, holiday parking and noise pollution. In the consultation, will the people of Stanwell Moor be engaged with directly? I also ask that we measure air and sound pollution, and use current levels as a baseline, so that we can determine the impact of the Heathrow expansion.

[Heidi Alexander]

In the ANPS, there will be a very thorough review of the noise requirements, and mitigations are set out in that document. I can give the hon. Gentleman a commitment that there will be meaningful engagement with his constituents.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lincoln Jopp and Heidi Alexander

Thursday 15th May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Lincoln Jopp (Spelthorne) (Con)]

The 7.58 am train from Sunbury to Shepperton is used by a lot of schoolchildren in my constituency to get to school, but it was cancelled for four days during a recent six-day period, which meant that children were late for school. That appears on their attendance register, which follows them throughout life. The Secretary of State will own South Western Railway by the end of the month. Will she commit to improving the reliability and punctuality of that section of the line?

[Heidi Alexander]

With the transfer of South Western trains into public ownership in 10 days’ time, the Government are determined to turn this situation around, but I have to say that we have inherited an abject mess from the train operating company, which over six years has failed to get the new fleet of Arterio 701 trains into service.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lincoln Jopp and Heidi Alexander

Thursday 9th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Heidi Alexander]

Yes, I think I will have a busy diary coming up.

[Lincoln Jopp (Spelthorne) (Con)]

We have an anomalous situation in Spelthorne whereby someone can get six London red buses on an Oyster card, but they cannot get the train out to the stations at the end of the line. Major employers, such as BP and Shepperton Studios, are sending buses up the line to bring down those people who cannot use an Oyster card. As the Secretary of State will own South Western Railway and is brilliant with Transport for London, could she please get Spelthorne into the Oyster zone?

[Heidi Alexander]

We are exploring how we can extend pay-as-you-go to other stations in the south-east. I must admit that my mental map is not good enough to identify every station yet, but we share that ambition to make it easier for people to use the railways across the south-east region.