"I completely agree with my hon. Friend. Since just before Christmas, the service has become intolerable. Although it improves on some days, on others it does not. I would like First Capital Connect to see the meetings that we have had and this debate as a means of moving forward, …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"The figure of 24% that I referred to covers the whole of the Great Northern line. We are not aware of the figure for the Hertford loop line; it may be much higher than that...." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"Perhaps we could move forward with the franchises. Will the Minister consider publishing delays and timetables separately for the Great Northern route so that we can see how the delays on the Hertford loop compare with delays on the main line? There is a suspicion among hon. Members that the …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"My hon. Friend is being generous in giving way. I am pleased that she has secured this important debate. My constituency has thousands of cyclists, who are fortunate to benefit from an integrated cycle network, so they feel safe cycling. My constituency is close to London, and over the past …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"I, too, congratulate the hon. Member for Middlesbrough (Andy McDonald) on securing such an important debate.
Every franchise is operationally different. East Coast runs 155 services per day, with six trains per hour from London in the peak. It essentially serves two main destinations from London: Leeds and Edinburgh. The …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"I was disappointed to hear my hon. Friend say that he passes through Stevenage without stopping—I would prefer him to stop an awful lot more. However, I, too, congratulate the Government. This Government and the previous Government have done a lot of good work on the rail industry, and we …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"I would not be able to acknowledge that, because I do not know the figures, but I can take the hon. Gentleman’s word for it.
Many people have said that the private sector ethos is not something we want to introduce to East Coast. In May 2011, I was fortunate …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Hood.
My constituency includes the rail stations of Stevenage and Knebworth, both operated by First Capital Connect. We have sought the debate today to illustrate some of our difficulties in achieving station improvements in small towns and cities throughout the …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech
"I understand what the hon. Lady is suggesting, and I assure her that we are running a campaign to keep Knebworth station’s ticket office open. I am pleased that First Capital Connect has assured us that it has no plans to close the ticket office. I will refer later to …..." Stephen McPartland - View Speech