As Summer Recess goes on through August it has great to
continue catching up with so many of you around Mid-Cornwall.
Over last week I held a well-attended and lively Meet the MP
event in St Austell, as well as a constituency advice surgery in Newquay, including
discussions about Brexit, development and planning, car parking, mental health
and more.
I visited Cornish Lithium to get an update on the potential
of lithium mining in Cornwall which would be a huge benefit to our local
economy.
I also met with our local Police Superintendent Ian Drummond
Smith to discuss a number of local matters that constituents had asked me to
raise as well as an update on a range of issues including Boadmasters, current
crime stats and the recent bout of unauthorised traveller camps.
On Friday I was privileged to ride on the inaugural journey
of one of the brand new trains that Great Western Rail will be introducing on
the Penzance to Paddington mainline. These trains are modern, faster, cleaner,
quieter and very importantly will be more reliable with 25% more seats. This is
an investment of around £480million, replacing the current rolling stock that
is more than 40 years old.
The new Intercity Express Train harnesses Hitachi’s
pioneering Japanese bullet train technology, known for its quality and
reliability. It has also been designed to withstand the region’s variable
weather conditions, including routes along the Dawlish coast.
Passengers can expect more seats, better on-board facilities
and shorter journey times, saving as much as 14 minutes between London
Paddington and Penzance.
Passengers will also benefit from new on-board technology,
including real-time journey updates and seat reservation screens.
The entire fleet is fitted with hybrid technology, allowing
trains to use both diesel and electric power, and switch effortlessly between
the two modes so they can make use of the electric overhead cables wherever
they are installed.
Across the UK, rail supports a total of £36.4 billion in our
economy and £11 billion in tax revenue a year, as well as employing 600,000
people. For our St Austell and Newquay constituency, this translates to an
additional £33.6 million and 690 jobs. What’s more, for every £1 spent on the
railway £2.20 is generated in the wider economy, showing how important rail is
to the wider economy and connectivity of the country.
To go along with this investment of rolling stock we have
also seen this Government’s investment in rail infrastructure continue locally as
part of the largest rail investment since the Victorian era. This has recently
included the £25m re-signalling work, which upgraded signalling equipment that
actually does date back to Victorian times with modern technology. This will
increase capacity on the mainline meaning we can have more frequent trains
running as well as create more local jobs including apprenticeships. Network
Rail will be recruiting a number of new apprentices to be based here in
mid-Cornwall which is a great opportunity for our young people to have a
worthwhile career on our railways.
The new trains should be in full service in the next week,
so look out for them on the tracks. This is a significant investment in our
railways but it is not the end and I look forward to continuing to press for
more improvements to support the investment we already have.
