Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the contribution of York's rail cluster in digital and advance rail to the rail industry in the UK.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to the future of advanced and digital rail. This is evidenced by our recent commitments to the future of rail, including the Integrated Rail Plan, a £96 billion programme to transform rail services in the North and Midlands.
York remains an important centre of railway expertise, through its long history of rail engineering and as the home to the National Railway Museum, Network Rail’s Eastern Route and the rail operator, LNER. York is also home to the largest Rail Operating Centre in the country and will have operational oversight of the pioneering East Coast Main Line upgrade. I am confident that York will continue to play a key role in helping to shape the railway of the future, through its strong heritage and through its considerable expertise in digital, data and automation.
Asked by: Peter Gibson (Conservative - Darlington)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support heritage rail.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The UK is a true pioneer in the history of railway development, nurturing and benefitting from the talents of Brunel and Stephenson among others. We are rightly proud of this legacy and must ensure that the next generation is endowed with both the skills and the passion to protect this legacy for the future.
The heritage railway sector is not only a fundamental component of our national heritage, it is an important aspect of our visitor economy with heritage railways attracting around 13 million visitors and bringing an estimated £250 million to the economy annually. It is because of this cultural and economic significance that the Government has supported the heritage rail network over the past year through its unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund, which has awarded approximately £15.7 million to railway related organisations across the country.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his policy is on maintaining domestic coal supplies for the heritage rail sector.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In line with our Net Zero target, the Government is committed to phasing out unabated coal-fired electricity generation by 2025, and recently consulted on moving this date forward to 2024. This policy applies to coal-fired power stations only – it does not apply to other coal consumers such as heritage railways.
Although coal will soon no longer be part of our electricity system, it will continue to be used as a fuel by a wide range of other industries such as the iron, steel and cement industries. We are confident that heritage railways will continue to have the option to tap into this significant domestic market. The decision on where to source coal for use in heritage railways and other industries is a private matter for the companies involved
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to include provision within Environmental Land Management scheme proposals to pay farmers and landowners to create active travel routes, including on old disused rail lines.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Beauty, heritage and engagement with the environment is an important part of our new environmental schemes.
These could support the creation of active travel routes through providing funding for access to infrastructure or for educational visits, for example. We will engage with a range of stakeholders as we develop the scheme. This includes through our tests and trials programme. Several tests and trials are considering how access can be incorporated in the new schemes.
We are working with stakeholders and end users to determine the specific land management actions that will be paid for under the Environmental Land Management scheme. We will set out more details on this later this year. 'The Path to Sustainable Farming: An Agricultural Transition Plan 2021 to 2024' set out examples of the types of actions that we envisage paying for under the scheme.
We'll also be testing and piloting key aspects of the new schemes in real situations with farmers and land managers beginning in 2021. This aims to learn and innovate prior to the start of an early prototype of the Sustainable Farming Incentive Scheme in 2022.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will ask Network Rail to set out a timetable for (a) the removal of graffiti, (b) the restoration of the brickwork and (c) the removal of overgrowth and vegetation on the Stockport rail viaduct.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Stockport Viaduct is a vital part of the railway infrastructure and Network Rail take seriously the responsibility to maintain it in safe working order. They carry out detailed examinations of the structure and address any defects or problems these highlight. This year Network Rail have spent £50k on repairing the brick work in areas highlighted by their examinations.
The main vegetation growth on the viaduct is buddleia which is challenging to manage as it grows so quickly. Network Rail have a specific £1m fund for Control Period 6 (1 April 2019- 31 March 2024) to be used on brick repair and de-vegetation work on the viaduct.
The viaduct is a listed structure in recognition of its importance to Stockport’s industrial heritage. Network Rail look to manage any graffiti on the viaduct in accordance with their policies and will review any specific areas of concern and will take action where appropriate.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which rail franchises have temporary non-compliance status from Network Rail and run rolling stock that dumps human waste and effluent on railway tracks in England and Wales.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The following franchised train operators have applied for, and been granted, temporary non-compliance status: Chiltern, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Great Western Railway, Greater Anglia, Northern, West Midlands Trains and Transport for Wales.
Other operators, such as charter and heritage, for which the Department is not responsible for have also been issued with non-compliance status by Network Rail.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which railway routes on the England and Wales rail network have temporary non-compliance status from Network Rail and allow the practice of dumping human waste and effluent on railway tracks.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Non-compliance status is granted to operators and not routes.
The following franchised train operators have applied for, and been granted, temporary non-compliance status: Chiltern, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Great Western Railway, Greater Anglia, Northern, West Midlands Trains and Transport for Wales.
Other operators, such as charter and heritage, for which the Department is not responsible for have also been issued with non-compliance status by Network Rail.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he and his Ministers have had discussions with Ministers in the Departments for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the potential effect on heritage railways of the (a) proposals in the DEFRA consultation on the cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood and (b) number of planning permissions granted by MHCLG for new surface coal mines; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
I attended an MP-level meeting on the future of coal for heritage railways in March of this year. My Defra Ministerial colleague was in attendance at this meeting, at which discussions included the economic and social benefits of the heritage rail industry, the industry’s efforts to diversify the sector through carbon offsetting and seeking alternative fuels, and the status of extant planning permissions for mines in the UK.
My Defra Ministerial colleague confirmed that the consultation on the cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood applies only to residential settings, thereby placing heritage railways outwith the scope of this consultation.
Heritage railway representatives took an action from the meeting to contact officials at MHCLG regarding planning permissions for new and existing surface coal mines.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what preparations her Department are undertaking to celebrate the opening of the first public railway in Stockton and Darlington in 1825.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Through the Heritage Action Zone initiative, Historic England, Government’s adviser on the historic environment, is helping to breathe new life into old places that are rich in heritage and full of promise. The Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) has been established to help rejuvenate and restore the historic railway and to help realise its potential to become a major heritage attraction in the build-up to its 2025 bicentenary. The aim is to provide the impetus for long term economic growth and regeneration in the area.
The preparations for celebrating the bicentenary are central to the HAZ. The HAZ is part of a much wider initiative around celebrating the anniversary, led by Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA), and there are extensive plans in place to mark the anniversary. A lot of well-developed planning on the S&DR HAZ has taken place involving all the key partners including local government partners as well as industry partners, such as National Rail and others. The partners are working together not just on the overall management of the project, but also on the planning of a highly ambitious cultural programme for 2025. Extensive groundwork has taken place to develop the corridor of the S&DR HAZ into a coherent attraction with all key partners working on plans to celebrate 2025 as the anniversary of a great moment in our shared history. The partners’ intention is to create a permanently enhanced cultural attraction across the S&DR HAZ area in order to leave a lasting legacy.
The National Railway Museum, part of the DCMS-Sponsored Science Museum Group, will also be celebrating this monumental anniversary. The Railway Museum in York and its sister site, Locomotion in Shildon, are being transformed in order to reimagine the way they share the inspirational story of Britain’s railways with future generations, and visitors from around the world. These redevelopments, supported by £18.6m of government funding, will culminate in significant celebrations to mark the 200th anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 2025.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the answer of 9 May 2019 to Question 249255, what the outcome was of the meeting between his officials and heritage rail sector representatives; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
My officials held a productive meeting with representatives of the heritage rail sector in May and they continue to have ongoing discussions with DEFRA on this subject. They committed to raise the issues discussed with their relevant counterparts in Government, and to undertake further discussions with the heritage rail sector following this.