Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the trends in the level of skilled workers to complete rail electrification of the (a) North and (B) South Wales main lines.

Network Rail, as the infrastructure manager for Great Britain’s railways, is responsible for considering the skills and workforce requirements for infrastructure projects such as electrification schemes. It is assisted in this by the National Skills Academy for Rail, which supports the rail industry in acquiring, maintaining and developing the workforce it needs.