4. Statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport: Transport for Wales

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:43 pm on 23 January 2018.

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Photo of Mick Antoniw Mick Antoniw Labour 3:43, 23 January 2018

Cabinet Secretary, thank you for the statement—hopefully, the first of many more. Transport for Wales, of course, is very tied up not just with the rail franchise but also with the metro; in fact, the two very much go hand in hand. Can I first of all welcome the basing of Transport for Wales in Pontypridd? The partnership between Welsh Government and Rhondda Cynon Taf council is already a significant catalyst for the regeneration of the area. There's also the proposals that may lead to jobs, training and apprenticeships with regard to the maintenance of rolling stock at places like Taff's Well, and also the development of and Welsh Government funding for apprenticeships in Coleg y Cymoedd related to railway engineering.

But can I say from your report that there are a number of things I'd like you to consider that concern me, to some extent? One is the five-year capital funding that's referred to. If you could, perhaps, provide a bit more detail about that, because this is obviously an area of considerable concern. Secondly, the area of 15 to 20 per cent efficiencies—precisely what that means. We know that when the Tories talk about efficiencies, they're talking about cuts. What exactly do we mean by 15 to 20 per cent efficiencies? Certainly, Chris Grayling has basically told us that not only are we not going to have the electrification of the Valleys lines and the line to Swansea, but we should be jolly well glad that we're not having it because it's actually going to be so much better without electrification. What are the implications of that in terms of the planning and the five-year capital programme because of the issues to do with trains and the types of train stock that we were going to have?

My fourth point is really this: an essential part of all this is the extension of the lines, extension into areas, breaking the stranglehold of traffic, enabling the development of public transport and people to travel across, around, through the Valleys to wherever without going on the roads. Of course, I've raised with you many times the issue of the railway line from Creigiau to Llantrisant and the importance of that, yet we still have very little clarity about where that may fit within the capital programme and in fact whether it will be this phase, whether it will be the next phase or whatever. I think the point is that there is growing interest about the whole importance of this to the development of the economy and south Wales society, as far as my constituency is concerned—Taff Ely. But there is a need for much greater clarity. When are we going to be able to receive that clarity and that sort of detail that people want to see?