7. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on rail services in south-east Wales? OAQ51305

Yes. The appointment of the operator and development partner to deliver the next Wales and borders rail services and the metro will lead to a step change in services and connectivity in south-east Wales, along with the rest of Wales and the borders.

I thank the Cabinet Secretary for that answer. In March 2015, it was announced that there would be a dualling of the Ebbw Vale line as part of a £40 million initiative that would deliver a half-hourly service. This was amid much fanfare. There were public engagement events and a great deal of media coverage and it was said that dualling the track would be complete by the following winter, to be followed swiftly by new platforms and new signalling. A letter I’ve received from Network Rail reveals that all physical works were put on hold in December 2016 as the Welsh Government initiated a pause-and-review period, and now we’re approaching winter 2017 with no half-hourly service and the work remains incomplete. Will the Cabinet Secretary please apologise to the people of the Ebbw valley for this delay? Will he give them a full explanation and will he provide them with a new completion date?

I can say to the Member that my officials are working with Network Rail to review the scheme, as he said—to review the objectives, to review the delivery plan and the cost estimates to deliver the most effective infrastructure solution to enhance frequency of services along the Ebbw line. We are absolutely committed to ensuring that communities along that line are better connected. In terms of the metro project, increasing the capacity of the Ebbw line to four trains an hour should be considered as part of the metro phases, and I’ve requested in the meantime that we focus on driving efficiency to deliver best value for money.

The outcome of the review that I commissioned will inform the most cost-effective methodology for completing the infrastructure works. They are works that we are committed to, and I would say to the Member’s constituents that we are determined to ensure that we deliver a step change in the service that they receive, that we are determined to better connect these communities together, and that we will do it for the least cost to the taxpayer.

I thank the Cabinet Secretary.