Speeches by Atkinson.

“The Conservatives announced that they were scrapping the northern leg of HS2 in a former railway station, summing up their attitude to the railway and sending shockwaves through the industry, including in Derby, a rail city that will be building the HS2 trains. Will the Transport Secretary ensure certainty and timeline…”

“I welcome this evidence-led action on grooming gangs. It takes courage to come forward and share deeply traumatic experiences, so will the Home Secretary confirm that this inquiry will build on the evidence already collected and recommendations made over previous inquiries, investigations and reports, including the las…”

“I thank the Minister for having taken the time to meet me and hear the case for Saint Benedict school to be rebuilt to be more sustainable, safe and secure. The neighbouring primary school, St Mary’s, is the greenest in the UK and an incredible example of what a rebuild can do to inspire young minds. Will the Minister …”

“I will not be alone in having shed tears over the heartbreaking photograph of the Royal Derby hospital doctor, Dr Prateek Joshi, his wife Dr Komi Vyas, and their three beautiful children, Miraya, Nakul and Pradyut, in the aeroplane moments before take-off and then the crash. I was with their friends and hospital collea…”

“When you are recruiting how do you find people with the skills you need?”

“We saw a day when workers with a combined welding experience of nearly 1,000 years walked out the door because of the delays under the previous Government in securing the Elizabeth line trains. You are absolutely right that that was great news for Toyota, Rolls‑Royce or others who value their skills, but, when i…”

“I think I already asked about barriers. That is covered.”

“I would like to move on to Great British Railways, in which, as a Derby MP, and with its headquarters coming to Derby, I have a bit of a vested interest. What are the opportunities? How do you see the procurement system developing with Great British Railways? What will be the benefits, and what barriers will it need to…”

“Expensively.”

“I want to ask about Great British Railways but, before I do, you have talked about 10-year timescales, when we know that the life cycle of a train is more like 30 or 35 years. Is there not benefit in looking beyond 10 years, at what will come next? It is not as if, with this kind of product, we do not know.”

“Can I just ask something about electrification? With the future being, as you said, discontinuous electrification, what further infrastructure is needed to allow it, and how are those conversations going? Sometimes it seems that those responsible for infrastructure will say that there is a need for a rolling stock stra…”

“Absolutely.”

“It is great to hear you describe it as doors being opened with this Government. Are there any obstacles in relation to having to deal with multiple different Departments? How well joined up do you think that is?”

“I have a follow-up. You talked about engaging with GBR. You talked about engaging with the Department for Transport and Network Rail. Considering, as you have set out, the sheer implications over so many different areas—jobs, skills and the possibility for export—who else in government do you liaise with? Do you also e…”

“What are your final thoughts on the need for both rolling stock and infrastructure planning to be in tandem?”

“We have heard how important it could be for a rolling stock strategy to be in tandem with an infrastructure pipeline as well. I would really like your thoughts on that and whether there are opportunities to finance the infrastructure as well as the rolling stock.”

“Thank you.”

“Have you been able, and have you been engaging, in relation to the procurement strategy, to feed in that knowledge?”

“In terms of the knowledge that you have when you are looking at the full life cycles of different trains, you know what is likely to need to be replaced. What knowledge do you have that might be able to be put into a national passenger rail fleet forecast?”

“Happy birthday, Mr Speaker. Today’s brilliant announcement backing Rolls-Royce to deliver small modular reactors creates more skilled jobs while also delivering clean, secure energy that does not rely on fossil fuels, even when the sun does not shine and the wind does not blow. Does the Minister agree that the decision…”