I join other hon. Members in congratulating my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey) on securing the debate and providing a timely and valuable opportunity to discuss the future of rail services in East Anglia. I take on board the points that many of my hon. Friends made about the unity behind the prospectus that was published yesterday.
I am well aware that regional rivalries go back to before the time when Boudiccan hordes burned down Colchester, so it is no mean feat to unite Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk, and the whole of East Anglia.
We fully recognise the importance of good transport links in East Anglia; that is why the vital dualling of the A11 got the go-ahead. My hon. Friend the Member for South West Norfolk (Elizabeth Truss) and others were right to highlight the importance of housing growth and the provision of infrastructure to support it. My hon. Friend the Member for Mid Norfolk (George Freeman), with his characteristic insight, analysed the economic benefits of transport improvements and the potential for expanding life sciences in East Anglia. Like everyone else on the coalition side of the House, I acknowledge the importance of getting the cost of running the railways down, so that we can take the pressure off fares and respond to the kinds of points that have been made by several hon. Members, including my hon. Friend the Member for Witham (Priti Patel).
Punctuality and reliability, which are obviously crucial, were raised by my hon. Friends the Members for Suffolk Coastal, for Witham, for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (Dr Poulter), and for Ipswich (Ben Gummer). The period of poor service that came about with the start of the franchise was very unfortunate. Abellio has apologised to its customers. I am hopeful that lessons have been learned. Performance has improved significantly since a problematic start. I welcome the collaborative work that is now under way between Abellio and Network Rail, with a view to improving infrastructure performance and ensuring that possessions are managed more efficiently.
The resilience and reliability of the infrastructure remains a concern. I have no doubt that the rail regulator will continue to scrutinise Network Rail’s record and press for improvement. Network Rail is, however, working hard to address the problems, with a major renewal of the overhead line equipment, which has been one of the greatest sources of vulnerability over recent years. The Government are also taking action to crack down on cable theft, which Network Rail highlighted for me as a key problem for the reliability of the network.
Improvements are on the way. Parts of the east of England will benefit from Thameslink. Others, in Essex, will benefit from Crossrail, as we have heard. The work on Beccles loop is happening, thanks partly to support from Suffolk county council. I recognise the aspirations for progress on the western section of East West Rail, and the possibility of a future link between Cambridge and Oxford. Of course, progress is being made on the central section, which we hope will provide momentum for further progress. I agree with my hon. Friend the Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich on the crucial importance of upgrading freight connections, particularly between Felixtowe and Nuneaton, to ensure that we relieve pressure on the roads by providing an attractive freight alternative on the rails. The Government are committed to continuing to invest in improving our railway’s capacity to take freight.
The extent to which we can fulfil all the aspirations that have been talked about today, and to which we can achieve goals of the kind set out in the prospectus, will depend on the funds available, and, of course, a careful assessment of competing priorities around the country. I got the message loudly and clearly—