Heidi Alexander MP: speeches

Speeches

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right. This is shocking, and the truth of the matter is that this Government are picking up the bill for the mess created by the previous Government. I would be very happy to meet him to discuss how we can improve the capacity, frequency and reliability of services between England and his constituents in Glasgow, and I look forward to discussing that with him in more detail soon.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  That approach certainly lies behind much of the work that we have done in our plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail. My hon. Friend will be aware that at the spending review we announced more than £15 billion for mayors in our city regions to improve connectivity between towns and cities, which are major centres of employment. His aspirations for his area and for his constituents align very closely with ours.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member is right to raise those important issues. We will always treat any whistleblowing complaints with the utmost seriousness. When it comes to fraud, I reassure him that, as part of the reset, HS2 is strengthening its counter-fraud capability and its internal controls and processes. When spending this amount of taxpayers money, it should be treated it as if it were our own, with the care and attention that we would apply to our own money. We are therefore taking all necessary steps to ensure that we strengthen the controls within the organisation to ensure value for money for the taxpayer.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is right to highlight that development around Old Oak Common is proceeding in advance of the completion of the rail network. I am pleased that the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation has gone out to find a development partner to build 8,000 new homes in the area, with potentially 1,000 of them starting in this Parliament. We need to ensure that there is adequate public transport provision for any homes and development that happen to provide for new residents. I will take away her specific point about the Elizabeth line; I am not entirely sure of its feasibility, but I will come back to her with more detail.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  As I said to the right hon. and learned Member for Kenilworth and Southam (Sir Jeremy Wright), in our announcement about Northern Powerhouse Rail a couple of months ago, we committed to doing a feasibility study on what a future link between Birmingham and Manchester might look like. We have not taken any decisions on the route, the specification, or the speed that the new line would facilitate. I recognise that there are significant capacity constraints north of Birmingham, but as we set up Great British Railways and renationalise our railways, I am keen to ensure that HS2 becomes the spine of the network and unlocks capacity, frequency and reliability improvements elsewhere in the country.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  The right hon. and learned Gentleman makes a very interesting point. One of the things that I am most keen to do is ensure that the huge investment that we are putting into HS2 between London and Birmingham results in an improved passenger experience for people across the rest of the country more broadly. That is one of the reasons why, when we made the announcement about Northern Powerhouse Rail earlier this year, we also announced a feasibility study on a new connection between Birmingham and Manchester. While it is slightly too soon to get into the specifics of what that would look like, I can assure the right hon. and learned Gentleman that there is thinking and planning under way in the Department on ensuring that this investment unlocks the maximum benefit across the country.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend the Chair of the Select Committee is right that the problems of HS2 were born many years ago. The fact that the civil engineering was delayed for four years is not the product of decisions by this Government or the current management of HS2, but is, as she says, about overly optimistic cost estimates, construction starting before designs were mature, insufficiently controlled delivery, poor contractual arrangements, gold-plating, and constant changes in policy and scope. She is entirely right on that. My hon. Friend asked me what lessons we are learning about the delivery of future transport infrastructure. On Northern Powerhouse Rail, we have worked closely with local leaders to agree scope, priorities and sequencing in advance, so that we know what elements of the overall programme will be delivered first. We have set an overall budget cap for that, and are securing local contributions to ensure that we maximise the economic and regeneration potential of the new transport infrastructure in those places. We are learning the lessons.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on levering in a question on air passenger duty into a statement on HS2.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  My apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker. Previous Prime Ministers, in my view, created the world’s most expensive slow-motion car crash, and they barely batted an eyelid. This Government have rolled up our sleeves and done the hard yards, putting the right team in place and being honest about the scale of the challenge. I understand that this statement today will be met with cynicism and anger, but I say with genuine pride and conviction that I believe we are finally starting to see real delivery. Tunnelling machines are currently working under Londoners’ feet to make HS2 to Euston a reality, and Birmingham’s skyline is changing before our eyes, with new film studios, a sports quarter and housing all being built around the new Curzon Street station. This is national renewal in action. When I last worked with Mark Wild and Mike Brown, we took the delayed and over-budget Crossrail project and turned it into the Elizabeth line, which has now served more than half a billion passengers. We have done it before, and we will do it again. I commend this statement to the House.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  I would be very happy to ask relevant officers from HS2 to meet my right hon. Friend and look at options for the Hillingdon Outdoor Activities Centre. When I look at the scale of some of the structures being built on the outskirts of London—the 2.1-mile-long Colne valley viaduct, for example—it is evident what a huge and ambitious construction project this is. I am sorry that there have been some impacts on communities and community groups, and I would be happy to look at alternatives.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  I will gently correct the hon. Member. When it comes to HS2, we may be talking about tens of billions, but we are not talking about hundreds of billions. He makes a fair point about the importance of investment in walking and cycling. The Government are due to launch the third iteration of the cycling and walking strategy, and we are backing that with £600 million-worth of investment. We realise the benefits that active travel—people walking and cycling more, and using public transport —can have not just for people’s own health, but for the environment and the economy. It is something that the local transport Minister and I care deeply about and will ensure that we make progress on.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  I hope the hon. Gentleman is reassured that I am already looking at this matter and have discussed it with HS2’s leadership. My right hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North (Liam Byrne) has certainly raised it with me as well. Where possible, I am keen to release land to enable development and regeneration and to unlock new homes and workspaces. If that can take place without compromising the delivery of HS2, I am keen that it should happen. A piece of work is under way within HS2 to look at the specific issues relating to Arden Cross.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  I cannot spend the money twice. I have taken the decision to reduce the speed of HS2 to 320 kph, which we believe could save up to £2.5 billion and result in delivery a year earlier. Given how long people have been waiting for this new railway, I think that is the responsible thing to do so that people can get on these trains sooner than they otherwise would. I understand that the hon. Member is a fearsome advocate for those rail improvements for his constituency, and I am sure that we will talk about them more at the next Transport questions.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend has been a fearsome advocate for his constituents on this issue, and I know that he is meeting the Rail Minister later today to talk about the impact on his constituency. I have heard nothing to suggest that the works at Streethay will not be delivered on time. If there is any new information that I have not been apprised of, I will come back to my hon. Friend and let him know. It is important that we continue with the works north of Birmingham up to Handsacre junction, because that is how HS2 will connect to the wider rail network. In the short term, this project will improve connections between London and Birmingham; in the longer term, this is about improving the frequency, capacity and reliability of connections to the north-west, and beyond to Scotland. I appreciate his constituents’ patience with this project, because it is in the national interest.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  If the hon. Gentleman would like to write to me about the case for reopening Shap and Tebay, I would gladly consider that. We are reopening some rail stations across the north of England. The Northumberland line, which I visited at the start of last year, has been an enormous success, with new stations at places like Ashington and Blyth. We are investing in rail in the north of England—that was demonstrated by our commitment to Northern Powerhouse Rail—but I am happy to look at the specifics of the scheme that he suggests.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  It is not true to say that Wales is getting nothing. At the spending review last year we announced £445 million in direct funding to modernise and upgrade Welsh rail, and only a couple of months ago, in February, the UK Government, with the former Welsh Government, announced a long-term pipeline of rail enhancements that could total up to £14 billion. I would be happy to discuss rail enhancements with the new leadership of the Senedd, and I look forward to having a constructive working relationship with the First Minister and his Cabinet.

• 19 May 2026 · High Speed 2 Reset · Hansard source

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  One of the failings of HS2 has been to focus on the speed of the line and the four stations, when actually one of its major benefits is to free up capacity on the existing west coast main line between London and Birmingham to enable better regional services and to enable more freight to transfer from lorries on the road to the rail network. For too long the project has been about speed and not about seats and reliability. Through this reset, we are changing that. As I said earlier, we are determined to ensure that this will be the spine of the Great British Rail network that we will deliver as we renationalise the railways.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  We have extended the fuel duty cut, which was due to end this month, until September, and we have launched the fuel finder tool. Together, they will save motorists £129 compared with previous plans.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Gentleman raises an interesting question, but I reassure the House that, in our many conversations with airlines and airports in recent weeks, we have not been told of any immediate disruptions to jet fuel supply. However, we will continue to monitor the situation closely, and work with airlines and jet fuel suppliers to understand what mitigations may be required should any disruptions arise.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I am delighted to confirm that improvements to the A19 at Moor Farm have been included in the pipeline of schemes that we have asked National Highways to develop for construction. I thank my hon. Friend for her tireless advocacy on behalf of her constituents, and for making such a strong case for this scheme in particular.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady will know that roadworks on local roads are the responsibility of each local highway authority. As she says, there are some specific routes for businesses to claim losses when the works are carried out by utilities such as gas or water companies. If she has proposals for a wider scheme and would like to write to me about them, I will consider them.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I sympathise with the frustration of local residents. I am as keen as they are, and as I know my hon. Friend is, to see services start on that section of infrastructure. I know discussions continue between Chiltern and the trade unions on operational arrangements and the preparatory works to trains and stations. I assure him that, as soon as we have a start date, he will be the first to know.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Thanks to my hon. Friend’s steadfast support, major works are under way: renewing electrification, installing axle counters and improving drainage to prevent flooding. Those upgrades will boost Thameslink’s reliability, including for services to his constituency. I can also tell him that driver numbers have risen by 50 since July 2024. We will continue to press Govia Thameslink Railway to strengthen performance and cut cancellations.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I have visited Stanmore station, and I understand the difficulties that are presented to the hon. Gentleman’s constituents. We are investing in the Access for All scheme nationally and, as he has indicated, Transport for London is investing in his constituency too. We are ambitious in this space, because the railway should be there for everyone. It should be an inclusive service that we offer to the entire country.

• 26 Mar 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman is right to reflect on the fact that a reliable and frequent train service is important to economic growth. I would be happy to speak about the detail of those particular changes with the Rail Minister and come back to him, including on whether there are any potential mitigations we could bring in.