The new secretary of state for transport, Louise Haigh, says transport is ‘central to achieving the missions for government that the prime minister has committed us to’

 
DfT’s ministerial team (left to right): Lilian Greenwood (future of roads), Simon Lightwood (local transport), Louise Haigh (secretary of state), Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill (rail) and Mike Kane (aviation, maritime and security)

 
New transport secretary Louise Haigh has promised to deliver the biggest overhaul to transport in a generation.

Addressing Department for Transport staff on Monday, Haigh set out her strategic priorities, putting transport at the heart of a mission-driven government.

They include improving performance on the railways and driving forward rail reform, and improving bus services and growing usage across the country.

It will take all our effort but the new motto of our department – our purpose – is simple: move fast and fix things

Haigh said: “It will take all our effort but the new motto of our department – our purpose – is simple: move fast and fix things.

“Our department is so clearly central to achieving the missions for government that the prime minister has committed us to. “Growth, Net Zero, opportunity, women and girls’ safety, health – none of these can be realised without transport as a key enabler.”

Haigh will be assisted by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill, who has left his role as chair of Network Rail to become minister of state for rail. His predecessor as rail. minister, Huw Merriman, hailed Hendy’s arrival at the DfT as “a superb appointment for the railway and the reform agenda”.

 
Former ministers hail Hendy’s appointment

The new government’s decision to recruit Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill as minister of state for rail was widely welcomed within the transport sector.

The chair of Network Rail was one of a number of non-political appointments installed by prime minister Keir Starmer to create a ‘government of all the talents’.

Support for the appointment came from two former transport ministers contacted by Passenger Transport this week.

Hendy’s arrival at the DfT was warmly welcomed by his immediate predecessor, Huw Merriman, who served as minister of state for rail from October 2022 until last week’s general election. He previously served as chair of the House of Commons Transport Select Committee.

Merriman remarked: “A superb appointment for the railway and the reform agenda. Like many, I’ve regarded Peter as a mentor. The respect he has across the industry will ensure that the integration of track and train will be delivered with GBR. As we approach the 200th anniversary of the birth of the modern railway, the future of rail looks bright with Peter’s appointment.”

Keir Starmer has, in his early appointments, shown a welcome tendency to appoint people who actually know their subjects … Peter Hendy comes into that category

Meanwhile, Norman Baker, who served as a minister at the Department for Transport between 2010 and 2013, said: “Keir Starmer has, in his early appointments, shown a welcome tendency to appoint people who actually know their subjects – like the new prison and science ministers. Peter Hendy comes into that category.

“At Network Rail, Peter made progress in getting the behemoth into a better state, though I would have liked to have seen faster and more radical progress than what we did see.

“If he is the only transport minister in the Lords, he will also have to answer questions on the whole range of the department’s activities, which will mean he has to be up to speed on buses, trams, motoring, aviation and shipping as well, though I imagine his main task will be to steer through the expected railways bill.”

Hendy is tasked with delivery of one of transport secretary Louise Haigh’s five strategic priorities – improving performance on the railways and driving forward rail reform – and making important contributions to others.

In addition, Starmer this week announced the appointment of other ministers at the DfT, including Lilian Greenwood, a former chair of the Transport Select Committee (future of roads), Simon Lightwood (local transport), and Mike Kane (aviation, maritime and security).

 
Louise Haigh’s five strategic priorites

  • Improving performance on the railways and driving forward rail reform
  • Improving bus services and growing usage across the country
  • Transforming infrastructure to work for the whole country, promoting social mobility and tackling regional inequality
  • Delivering greener transport
  • Better integrating transport networks

 
This article appears in the latest issue of Passenger Transport.

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