Asked by: Tom Hunt (Conservative - Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the impact of rail strikes on the Port of Felixstowe.
Answered by Robert Courts
The Department has been working closely with Network Rail and Freight Operating Companies, and those bodies with key users of rail freight such as the port of Felixstowe, to minimise disruption as far as possible during the strikes to protect critical freight flows in key industries. As part of this Network Rail is prioritising keeping essential freight routes open as far as possible, including lines to and from major ports like London Gateway, Felixstowe and Liverpool, to mitigate disruption to supply chains. Whilst a full service is not being run, there will continue to be rail freight provision for the port of Felixstowe throughout the strike period that will mitigate impacts on their operations. Departmental officials are engaged with the port, Network Rail and freight operating companies to monitor impacts.
Whilst there will be impacts on the port of Felixstowe, their current capacity levels mean that this should not cause any major congestion issues for the port at this time.
The Department maintains close engagement with the port and will be discussing mitigations and impacts with the port, post- strike, in order to inform actions for future strikes (if needed).
Asked by: Tom Hunt (Conservative - Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the average salary of a train driver employed by Greater Anglia.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Each train operating company, including Greater Anglia, is responsible for its own employees and the Department does not hold this information.
However, the median gross annual pay for train and tram drivers was approximately £59,000 in 2021.
Asked by: Tom Hunt (Conservative - Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of rail strikes on the Greater Anglia line.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We deeply regret the decision of the rail unions to hold three days of strikes. They will adversely affect students taking examinations and have negative impacts on working people and the wider economy.
We committed £16 billion to support the railways through the pandemic - taxpayers’ money - equivalent of £600 for every household in this country or £160,000 per rail worker in this country.
Department officials are working with the industry, including Greater Anglia and Network Rail, to provide some services on key routes, including on the Greater Anglia network but these services will be very limited.
Asked by: Tom Hunt (Conservative - Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Freeport East on demand for rail freight transport in the East of England.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
As part of Freeport bidding and business case process, consideration has been given to existing transport capabilities and capacity. Freeport East benefits from good existing road and rail freight links. Significant investment has enabled freight trains to operate into the port each day and means it is the UK’s busiest and best rail connected port. Freeports are in the initial stages of set-up and exact details of future growth and potential demand are not clear, and so no specific demand assessments have been made.
Asked by: Tom Hunt (Conservative - Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what cost benefit analysis his Department has made of upgrading Haughley Junction.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
My Department commissioned Network Rail to undertake analysis on upgrades to Haughley Junction. This work concluded in 2020 and confirmed that both options to deliver an upgrade to Haughley Junction represent “Poor” Value for Money.