HC Deb 13 March 1995 vol 256 cc546-7
4. Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what evaluation his Department has undertaken of the likely impact on the Welsh economy of downgrading of railway service provisions in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Mr. Gwilym Jones)

I reject the malicious presumption in the hon. Gentleman's question. There are no plans to downgrade the railway service in Wales.

Mr. Llwyd

The Minister used the word "malicious", but I have not even started yet. There may be no such intention, but I recently met the Secretary of State for Wales, who knows that in north Wales, for example, the Conwy valley line will shortly lose £900,000 in charges paid to it by the Trawsfynydd power plant. That obviously poses a threat.

The Cambrian line is also under threat, among others. Is any appraisal currently being undertaken, or is the Secretary of State as useless as he was said to be by Leslie Morgan the other day on the programme "On the Record"? That Conservative described the right hon. Gentleman as useless to mid-Wales, and said that the sooner he went the better.

Mr. Jones

I think that the "threats" are in the imagination of the hon. Gentleman, who rushes to scare his constituents and everyone else in Wales. The Franchising Director is conducting a review; he has already published his draft proposals for the Great Western service, and his proposals for the rest of Wales will follow in due course. The hon. Gentleman should approach the matter positively. The combination of privatisation and the channel tunnel represents a tremendous opportunity for the railways of Wales.

Mr. Ron Davies

That is precisely the point. The Under-Secretary must explain why we should not expect the worst, given that the Great Western is the only service for which minimum requirements have been published. We see that there will be a 20 per cent. reduction on the Paddington to south Wales service, which will, in effect, end at Swansea.

There is massive public opposition to this madcap scheme, which will fragment the national service. It will waste £1 billion of taxpayers' money and cost thousands of jobs. Do the Government not realise that, if Wales is to have a successful and dynamic economy, we must have a properly planned, integrated and accountable transport system? No reputable Government would abdicate from that responsibility.

Mr. Jones

If the hon. Gentleman had done his research a little better, he would have known that this is the first passenger service requirement that has been published. The Franchising Director is now working on others for the rest of Wales. This is the first time that a minimum provision has been laid down, and I stress that it is a minimum provision. Great Western has already stated that its new timetable, which is to be introduced in May, will maintain the current service.