Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on increasing support for the hydrogen-powered bus sector in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland has proven expertise with hydrogen-electric power in the bus sector and we have seen the introduction of the world’s first hydrogen-electric double-decker bus by Wrightbus this year.
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland visited Wrightbus in August and recently discussed the opportunities for Northern Ireland with the Transport Secretary. I and my officials are engaging with DfT and BEIS on the UK bus and hydrogen strategies and aim to capitalise on our joint ambitions for these areas. It was good to see Wrightbus recently securing orders for hydrogen-electric buses through its H2Bus consortium and we look forward to forthcoming announcements on the UK’s Hydrogen and National Bus Strategies.