Speeches by Lightwood.

“I would agree in terms of the parallel. Most people would admit that having one train operating company rather than 17, and having the ability for more areas to franchise, makes integration a much easier prospect.”

“I accept what they are saying there, but every single area comes with different challenges—different social, economic and geographical challenges and different services that they have inherited. Therefore, they come at this in a slightly different way, at different speeds. That is why we try to measure that success thr…”

“I cannot comment on the response from the Secretary of State, but I hear what you are saying. That would relate to the DCO at the time.”

“Yes, I think there is, and we agreed the frameworks working with local areas. If you think there is not, I would be interested in hearing more about that.”

“We have said that putting people first is at the heart of this strategy—understanding how people actually experience the transport system, and using that insight to shape the decisions we make. That is exactly what we tried to do with Better Connected. As we were developing it, we engaged extensively with passengers, c…”

“I would see it as part of our role now. Obviously, we have a strategy in place, and we have done a lot of work to get it to where it is. It is important that we challenge ourselves when looking at future policy and ask if it is going to enable or to become a barrier, and then tackle that head on in future policy develo…”

“That is why we are investing in reliable public transport and infrastructure. If we ensure that we have good-quality services, people have the choice to use them. If they do, that drives revenue and further reinvestment; it is a virtuous cycle, if you like, easing the pressure on household budgets, while also ensuring …”

“What are you trying to say about the Treasury?”

“You have still seen increased funding and more consolidated funding across the board, not just in mayoral authorities. Obviously, things such as the Bus Centre of Excellence are an example where we are helping to skill up and share best practice across the board so that all areas can benefit from this.”

“You are right: this is about more than just publishing a strategy; it is about making sure that we have the right people, the right governance and the right cultures in place. We have established within the DFT a dedicated team who look after each of the 40 firm commitments that we have made and hope to achieve before …”

“Everyone comes from a different place. I cannot give you a timetable for every place in the country. That is why we have an outcomes framework.”

“There are options there in terms of future funding. We can look at that. Crucially, how can we support them in achieving that? I would rather support than penalise.”

“I had the same experience in Wakefield the other day. Both lifts were off, people were there who did not know that, so they could not adapt. It is really important that we are able to let people know in a timely way, so they can adapt.”

“Yes, I will come on to that. I will let Conrad come in on the discussions he has had with other Government Departments. I thought it was important to say how we are leading and showing the way. It is being monitored through our existing governance, so there will be clear accountability for implementation. More widely, …”

“It would be my intention that we continue to learn. As I said, it is a voluntary charter. I would be very keen to continue that learning process and engagement with the disabled community, to make sure that if it is not working, we change the approach so that it is. I am absolutely committed. When we were talking about…”

“Obviously, in the interim, there are things such as the bus service improvement plans and local transport plans. There is very much guidance there. You should be looking at cross-border issues and encouraging people to collaborate.”

“You are tempting me to relay exactly what is in the charter. We are still working on it, so I do not want to jump ahead there. However, in terms of places such as the railways under Great British Railways, National Highways and so on, there is not really going to be a choice about whether they are signed up or not. The…”

“We have the absolute expectation that agencies and all the other companies at the Department absolutely will be engaging as part of that.”

“Well, I hope so. As I said, we have continued to engage with organisations since its publication. What we do not want to do is to constantly republish a long-term strategy. Having some stability is really important, as is having those measurables in there to demonstrate we are making progress. The response across the t…”

“No. You have the outcomes framework as well in order to hold them to account, to make sure they are delivering what they said they were going to deliver, based on the conversations and insight they have given us to set those parameters.”