Questions Without Notice from the Party Leaders

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:51 pm on 15 October 2019.

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Photo of Paul Davies Paul Davies Conservative 1:51, 15 October 2019

First Minister, the big question commuters ask themselves each morning is not, 'Am I going to get a seat on a train?' but 'Am I going to be able to get onto this train, full stop?' Across the rail network in Wales there are posters proclaiming what is coming down the track with the promised changes to the network. In 2019, Transport for Wales have said there'll be more capacity on the Valleys lines, on-board infotainment launched, and that old Pacer trains will be phased out completely. I've raised this before—that, in order to increase capacity on the Valleys lines, Transport for Wales have actually brought back trains from the 1960s, and this week we hear that the old Pacer trains will not be phased out completely and that they will continue to run in 2020.

First Minister, now that we know that this promise has been broken—and we've heard earlier how you've broken promises in other areas—can you confirm—? [Interruption.] I can hear chuntering from your colleagues—. [Interruption.] I can hear chuntering from your colleagues, but you are responsible for train services here in Wales, and therefore can you confirm when these tired old trains will be finally taken off our tracks, or are you going to stick to the line that these things can't happen overnight?