Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps is he taking to improve rail services at (a) Horden and (b) Seaham.

The Department, through the Rail North Partnership, will continue to work with train operators and stakeholders to assess potential improvements to train services to Horden and Seaham. Any additional services must take into account network constraints on the Durham Coast Line and be justified by passenger demand, as well as affordable within operators’ existing business plans and budgets.