Rail Connections to London: Rural Towns

Sureena Brackenridge Excerpts

Monday 23rd March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sureena Brackenridge (Wolverhampton North East) (Lab)]

I wish to place on record my sincere thanks to my hon. Friend the Member for Shrewsbury (Julia Buckley) for her work in championing the Wrexham, Shropshire and midlands railway proposal, a new service that will link north Wales, Shropshire and the midlands, and on to London.

For many families in Wolverhampton and Willenhall, north Wales plays a very special part in our stories. We have all enjoyed day trips and summer holidays with the warmth of our Welsh neighbours. Stronger rail links will bring not just better transport connections, but social and economic connections and more choices for families.

Just as importantly, the service will strengthen local journeys, linking Walsall and Wolverhampton through the long-awaited new stations that opened last week at Willenhall and Darlaston. WSMR will support economic investment, regeneration and growth. It will improve access to jobs, apprenticeships and education, and better connect local businesses to wider markets, from north Wales all the way through to our capital.

[Steve Witherden (Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend for giving way when she is making such an excellent and passionate speech. I hope the WSMR bid will succeed, as it would benefit my constituents in Powys and in Wrexham. Does she agree with me that the proposal would be improved by an extra stop at one of the two Glyndŵr stations, Chirk or Ruabon, as Wrexham’s second-busiest of five stations?

[Sureena Brackenridge]

Yes, I have had the pleasure of visiting my hon. Friend’s beautiful constituency, and I am sure that cross-connections will be incredibly important to his constituents. He is a champion for that.

The proposal will make the current capacity work better and maximise the investment that has already been made. I urge the Minister to back this proposal. It has cross-party support to deliver the connections that my constituents are ready to use and from which they will certainly benefit.