Can I thank Hannah Blythyn for her questions, specifically for the important point that she raised about cross-border collaboration in terms of rail travel? The Member will be aware of the Growth Track 360 prospectus, which has been put together by the cross-border rail taskforce, which includes representatives from Wales as well as from the Cheshire and Warrington local enterprise partnership area and Merseyside. I think it’s essential, in the development of a north Wales growth deal bid, and, likewise, growth deals on the English side, that the Growth Track 360 prospectus ambitions are factored into the asks that are made of the UK Government in particular to ensure that the improvements to infrastructure on the English side of the border tie in well with improvements on the Welsh side of the border as well.

I think it’s also important, as we develop the vision for a north-east Wales metro, to consider those communities that are currently not connected to the rail network or bus network. The Member raises two particular communities: one is Mostyn, where there is a growing and expanding port, and the other is Greenfield, a historic community that is home to a considerable number of people. Both would be better served by an integrated metro system that has bus services that are reliable and frequent working with rail services that, again, are more frequent across the north Wales main line.

The Member is also right when she says that the quality of the passenger experience must be sufficient so as to encourage more people to travel more regularly by train rather than to act as a deterrent—likewise on bus services as well. We have seen good investment in buses recently. I’m pleased that we’ve been able to support Arriva Trains Wales in the announcement yesterday, but we believe that in the next franchise, the expectations that passengers should have for the Wales and borders franchise should be no less than those that you would have anywhere else in western Europe. That’s why we are asking the bidders to be as ambitious as possible in ensuring that the rolling stock is of the highest quality with all modern technology and comforts available to passengers.