Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she expects the first phase of East-West Rail to open this year; and what her Department's planned timetable is for the opening of the (a) Bletchley to Bedford and (b) Bedford to Cambridge sections.

The Department is working closely with Chiltern and other partners to confirm a start date for the service. We are looking forward to commencing services as soon as all necessary approvals and infrastructure are in place. Passenger services will commence once train testing and driver training have been completed. As for the second and third connections phases; the Government has committed to accelerating work to deliver EWR services between Oxford-Bedford. The full Oxford-Cambridge service is subject to an application for a Development Consent Order and is planned to commence from the mid-2030s.