Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure the availability of a stable and adequate skills base among the workforce in railway occupations.

Ensuring a skillful and resilient workforce remains a priority for the Department, and for Network Rail. Network Rail is continuing to invest heavily in the training of its workforce, both in the short term with £44 million invested in capability last year, and in the long term with £60 million invested in the creation of seven state of the art vocational training centres.

To ensure a skill base in the future workforce as well as the present, Network Rail have opened a new apprenticeship centre at Westwood which will by September this year be fully dedicated to the delivery of high quality residential apprenticeships. This will allow Network Rail to meet its commitment to deliver over 4200 apprenticeship new starters within the company by 2022, and supporting the creation of over 2000 within its supply chain.