§ 8. Dr. MarekTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Caernarfon (Mr. Wigley) of 10 June, Official Report, column 456, what action he has taken in connection with rail services under his responsibilities for initiatives for urban renewal in Holyhead.
§ Sir Wyn RobertsThe provision of rail services in Holyhead is the responsibility of British Rail. I have granted supplementary credit approvals of £250,000 to Gwynedd county council in the current financial year to fund the high-speed train refuelling facilities at Holyhead.
§ Dr. MarekWhat else does the Minister intend to do to ensure that Holyhead retains its position as the centre for freight travelling to and from the Republic of Ireland, especially in view of British Rail's stupid decision to use the route from Liverpool to Belfast and then transfer freight by lorry to Dublin? Also, what does the Minister intend to do to reinstate the InterCity service between north Wales and Euston? The 9 pm train from Holyhead was withdrawn a few weeks ago by British Rail, and between 100 and 150 people had to stand all the way to Crewe, packed into a four-car sprinter unit.
§ Sir Wyn RobertsOn the last point, I am sure that British Rail will be glad to hear of the heavy demand for its services. The hon. Gentleman knows that there has been an increase in the number of services available to take people, if not to Euston from north Wales, to Manchester and Crewe where they can take connecting trains for London. As for freight, we must make the services from Holyhead more competitive. The more I study the question, the more I realise that we lose freight traffic because we are not so competitive as we should be.