Rail Freight (Hansard, 23 July 2002)

§ Miss McIntosh
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guarantee he has had from the French Government that previous levels of cross channel rail freight will be resumed; and when he expects the full and reliable 100 services each way each week to be achieved. [72093]

§ Mr. Spellar
After their meeting on 12 July, my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary and the French Interior Minister announced that they would visit in September to confirm the effectiveness of security measures taken to ensure normal service.
A full and reliable service is one which meets demand. Immediately prior to the current disruptions the scheduled inbound service was 96 trains per week.

§ Miss McIntosh
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress he has made towards rail freight targets under the 10-year plan. [72092]

§ Mr. Jamieson
The Strategic Rail Authority set out in its Freight Strategy last year the detailed plans for achieving the significant rail freight growth envisaged by the Government's 10-year plan for Transport. During the financial year 2001–02, the first full year of the plan, the amount of rail freight moved has grown by 9 per cent.
We will be producing a review of the 10-year plan later in the year.