Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect on ferry companies operating from Portsmouth International Port of (a) port and (b) local transport infrastructure investment under the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership.

I have made no formal assessment of this kind. However, the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership has secured £124.8M for the first phase of its Strategic Economic Plan, and this will bring benefits through reducing journey times to Portsmouth which stand to benefit ferry users there generally, in parallel with the specific improvements benefiting Southampton services to the Isle of Wight.