Keir Starmer pledges end to boom-and-bust cycle for rail manufacturers, as Labour sets out roadmap to fix Britain’s broken railways
|
Today (Thursday 25th April), on a visit to Hitachi's rail
manufacturing plant in Newton Aycliffe, Labour Party leader Keir
Starmer has pledged to end the boom-and-bust cycle which is holding
back Britain's struggling rail manufacturing industry. On the
visit, Keir Starmer and Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh
pledged to deliver a new, long-term strategy for train
manufacturing, as part of Labour's wider commitment to a
comprehensive industrial strategy, and to...Request free trial
Today (Thursday 25th April), on a visit to Hitachi's rail manufacturing plant in Newton Aycliffe, Labour Party leader Keir Starmer has pledged to end the boom-and-bust cycle which is holding back Britain's struggling rail manufacturing industry. On the visit, Keir Starmer and Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh pledged to deliver a new, long-term strategy for train manufacturing, as part of Labour's wider commitment to a comprehensive industrial strategy, and to safeguard thousands of jobs in a vital strategic industry. The principles behind that long-term strategy will include:
The commitment comes as Labour today launched ‘Fixing Britain's Broken Railways' – a detailed new roadmap to deliver the biggest reform to Britain's broken rail system in decades. Labour will deliver a publicly owned railway that delivers for passengers, taxpayers and manufacturers. Britain's rail manufacturers have been plunged into crisis due to Conservative chaos and incompetence. The failure of Government Ministers to keep major infrastructure projects on track, deliver rail reforms, and to properly plan ahead has led to huge gaps in order schedules and put thousands of jobs at risk. Hitachi has warned that 700 jobs are at risk at its factory in the North East, with a further 1,400 jobs at risk across its supply chain. The Rail Minister has recently dismissed the prospect of thousands of job losses as ‘peaks and troughs'. Alstom in Derby has also been pushed to the brink of huge job losses, with the Transport Secretary having to be dragged kicking and screaming under pressure from Labour, industry and unions just to come back to the table. Keir Starmer and Louise Haigh met today with Hitachi management and workforce representatives to pledge reform to Britain's boom and bust rail sector and to hear first-hand what is needed to secure a bright future for a vital British industry. Keir Starmer MP, Leader of the Labour Party, said: “The workforce here at Hitachi is staring down the barrel of devastating job losses. Communities and local businesses across the North East will be hit hard if our proud manufacturing base here is not preserved. “This was not inevitable. Both in County Durham and at Alstom in Derby, thousands of jobs are in jeopardy because this Tory government has refused to deliver a proper industrial strategy. After 14 years of chaos and uncertainty, they have left our rail manufacturing sector teetering on the brink. “This is a crisis that must be resolved urgently and must not be allowed to happen again. That's why, as part of our wider plan to fix Britian's broken railways, Labour will bring forward a new, long-term strategy for this crucial sector. “It's time to end the Tory boom-and-bust. Labour will give rail manufacturing across Britian the secure, bright future it deserves.” Louise Haigh MP, Shadow Transport Secretary, said: “Britain was the country that created the railways, but under this Government a cycle of boom-and-bust has put the future of our rail manufacturing sector at risk. “Labour won't sit back and let another vital British industry be hollowed out due to Conservative chaos. “Labour will fix Britain's broken rail system by delivering a publicly owned railway fit for the future, and which delivers for passengers, taxpayers and manufacturers.” Ends Notes Ending the Boom-and-Bust Cycle for British Rail Manufacturing Labour has set out a detailed roadmap to fix Britain's broken railways and get Britain moving. That roadmap contains a commitment to develop a long-term strategy for train manufacturing, as part of Labour's wider industrial strategy, which supports British manufacturing, innovation and interoperability and aligns with the wider objectives of the industry. The current boom and bust rail system is letting down rail manufacturers. This failure is due to a lack of long-term strategy, lack of coordination between key players on our railways, and a lack of clear principles on what an effective rail network should look like. Labour will end today's boom-and-bust short-termism with a long-term strategy for train manufacturing, as part of Labour's wider industrial strategy. Principles behind this will include:
Labour has separately commissioned an independent, expert-led review into how to deliver transport infrastructure on time and to budget.[v] Part of the remit of this review is looking at the capacity of public bodies to effectively partner, procure, deliver infrastructure and provide value for money. The Crisis in British Rail Manufacturing British rail manufacturers are in crisis due to huge gaps in future order schedules. Hitachi has warned that up to 700 jobs are at risk at its Newton Aycliffe rail manufacturing factory due to gaps in future order schedules, with a further 1,400 jobs across its supply chain also at risk.[vi] Alstom's rail manufacturing plant in Derby has also been facing the prospect of up to 1,300 job losses.[vii] The Rail Minister, Huw Merriman, has recently dismissed the prospect of thousands of job losses in the sector as “peaks and troughs”,[viii] and the Transport Secretary has confirmed that the Government's options to step in are limited due to today's fragmented railways which puts individual operators in the driving seat for train procurement, making it hard to plan ahead across the whole network.[ix] After months of failing to act, the Transport Secretary has returned to the negotiating table with Alstom at the very last minute after considerable pressure from Labour, industry and unions, and no formal agreement has yet been reached.[x] After two years of discussions, Ministers have reportedly told Hitachi they will not approve an order of new trains for Avanti West Coast which would have helped to plug gaps in order schedules.[xi] Hitachi and Alstom had both won contracts to build trains for HS2, and have been clear that mismanagement of HS2 and uncertainty over delivery schedules have contributed to deep uncertainty for the rail manufacturing sector.[xii] The Government has demonstrated with Alstom in Derby that Ministers can get back around the table to support rail manufacturers when they want to. Labour has called for Ministers to do the same for Hitachi to safeguard hundreds of jobs in the North East. Fixing Britain's Broken Railways Labour's Shadow Transport Secretary has today set out a detailed roadmap to fix Britain's broken railways and get Britain moving. Labour's plans would:
Sources: [i] The lifetime costs of electric trains are £2-£3m less than diesel or hybrid equivalents:https://www.riagb.org.uk/RIA/RIA/Newsroom/Publications%20Folder/Rail_Electrification_The_Facts.aspx [ii] Labour has commissioned an independent review into how to deliver transport infrastructure on time and to budget:https://www.ft.com/content/2235ad79-ef55-4eea-9cb7-058ee102ca98 [iii] Electric trains are more reliable, more energy efficient and reduce journey times compared to diesel trains:https://www.riagb.org.uk/RIA/RIA/Newsroom/Publications%20Folder/Rail_Electrification_The_Facts.aspx [iv] As committed to in Labour's mission to Break Down the Barriers to Opportunity: https://labour.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mission-breaking-down-barriers.pdf [v] https://www.ft.com/content/2235ad79-ef55-4eea-9cb7-058ee102ca98 [vi] https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/03/31/hs2-contractor-hitachi-rail-braces-job-cuts-uk/#:~:text=Hitachi%2C%20whose%20UK%20factory%20employs,after%20two%20years%20of%20discussions. [vii]https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy6zw5q09xpo#:~:text=The%20UK's%20largest%20rail%20assembly,mothballing%20its%20Litchurch%20Lane%20factory. [viii] https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/louise-haigh-government-mark-harper-huw-merriman-labour-b2529559.html [ix] https://twitter.com/Mark_J_Harper/status/1773807598321422391/photo/1 [x] https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/04/16/britain-alstom-train-factory-saved-order-transport/ [xi] https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/03/31/hs2-contractor-hitachi-rail-braces-job-cuts-uk/#:~:text=Hitachi%2C%20whose%20UK%20factory%20employs,after%20two%20years%20of%20discussions [xii] https://www.itv.com/news/central/2023-09-12/2000-jobs-at-alstom-under-threat-as-hs2-delays-leaves-firm-with-no-contracts |