§ 13. Dr. Goodson-WickesTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress he has to report on measures to improve the service offered by the Northern line.
§ Mr. NorrisMy right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced on 29 March that London Underground would be holding a competition for the supply of privately financed rolling stock for the Northern line. This competition is now under way, and should be completed by the autumn.
§ Dr. Goodson-WickesMy hon. Friend will know of the pressure put on the Government by hon. Members on both sides of the House for an improvement in the Northern line. My constituency contains the Morden depot and two stations. I welcome the initiative for private sector involvement in the line. Will my hon. Friend give me some idea of the timing of the tenders and assure me that our constituents can look forward to a Northern line that can provide a service that is appropriate to the next century?
§ Mr. NorrisI am grateful to my hon. Friend for supporting my right hon. Friend's initiative. I hope that we may be in a position to look at the tenders before the end of the year. The initiative will significantly increase the rate at which improvements in the line can be made. As my hon. Friend implied, the station improvements in his constituency are a separate item in the budget; those stations will undergo a thorough refurbishment in the next two years.
§ Ms Glenda JacksonIs the Minister aware that it is the possibility of losing a competition that causes my constituents concern—not least in the light of a recent incident at Hampstead tube station, when the elevator had to be manually winched 181 ft to the surface? Will he consider sympathetically the call for a safety inquiry from my constituent Mrs. Jenny Woodley, whose son—as he knows—was tragically lost in an accident on the underground? That is desirable not least because manning levels throughout the system seem to be falling.
§ Mr. NorrisI am very ready to consider any representation from the hon. Lady in regard to an individual constituency case, and I will happily do so in this instance.
I found the hon. Lady's original question rather confusing. Is she saying that she does not welcome an initiative that is likely to deliver modern, safe and reliable 12 Northern line trains several years earlier than they would otherwise be available? I believe that the vast majority of her constituents will welcome this imaginative initiative which is designed to accelerate a pace of investment that is already four times as great under the present Government as it was at any time under the stewardship of her party.