§ Mr. Harrisonasked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement about the incident that occurred prior to 8.30 am on Friday 28 November north of junction 16 on the M1 motorway between London and Wakefield and which caused severe congestion.
§ Mr. MooreSevere traffic congestion was caused on M1, and throughout Northamptonshire, on 28 November as a result of a fire on an articulated lorry carrying cans of oil. The vehicle stopped on the northbound hard shoulder immediately north of junction 17 (M45). The fire quickly spread to the vehicle's load, and became extremely intense. Burning oil spread over three lanes of the motorway, badly damaging the road surface. Emergency services promptly brought the fire under control.
The motorway was initially closed to northbound traffic, which was diverted via A45 and A5. Later some traffic was able to use the motorway while the road was resurfaced, though other traffic continued to be diverted. A short delay to southbound traffic was caused by smoke from the burning oil.