Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to protect (a) railway workers and (b) passengers during extreme weather events.

Safety for both passengers and staff is a top priority for the Department. We want industry to get the basics right, like introducing treatment trains early and making preparations wherever possible, and also to explore new technology that could help improve resilience.

Network Rail has well-established operational measures it implements to manage services safely during extreme weather events such as line speed restrictions or diversions. It is also drafting long-term plans and has in place a weather resilience and climate change strategy to ensure the infrastructure can cope with climate change and short-term periods of extreme weather.