8. Welsh Conservatives Debate: The transport network

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:04 pm on 22 June 2022.

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Photo of Peter Fox Peter Fox Conservative 5:04, 22 June 2022

Well, you referenced the rail service and the current strikes, but you're not comprehending some of the questions Gareth put back to you, or the wider issues of the rural community. You focused very clearly on that one area, and I'm trying to point out that the transport network covers far more than just the rail area and those immediate issues that you focused on.

So, yes, the transport network is central to the success of our economy, and it's fundamental to our health and well-being, as Janet pointed out very firmly. It's so important that the transport system is solid, to enable our economy to drive forward. And Janet also highlighted the dire state of the rail network we have  at the moment and the poor conditions of the trains we're currently using. Now, that shouldn't be the project of many, many years of Welsh Labour Government here and we should see something better than that. In many of these areas, the only option people have in rural areas to get around is to drive, but this isn't an option for everyone. For people who do not have access to a car or those who may not wish to drive, the only option is buses, which often do not stop in the areas people need them to and are infrequent, as very clearly Sam pointed out. Taxis are the other way forward, which due to the distances involved can be prohibitively expensive for some people, whilst the nearest train station can be inaccessible for people, due to the points I raised earlier.

And whilst I hear what the Minister says about 'Llwybr Newydd', and I did take some time and read it, and it is actually a good read—and it's very aspirational; it has some really great ideas in it—but it's rhetoric; it's a narrative. What we're not seeing—I know it's spread over 20 years—is actual solutions to the issues here. It has aspirations about rural communities, staying at home, and working from home, and sharing lifts and things like that, but it has to have a lot more than that. We have to have a robust system in place that can get us from where we are now to that great aspiration, and what we're not seeing is those gaps being filled in at the moment. [Interruption.] Yes, I will, Tom.