Chamber comment on HS2 update

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Mark Thurston, Chief Executive of HS2 said in his update to the transport select committee that they had been told by the Department for Transport to only focus on the western leg of HS2.

Chamber policy adviser, Marianne O’Sullivan comments:

“It is deeply concerning to hear that the eastern leg of HS2 may be scaled back or scrapped. Doing so will increase regional disparities and do nothing to improve rail connections in the region. We need both the east and west sections completed to truly level up the North’s rail infrastructure.

“The North East has faced historic under-investment in its transport network. Better connections will increase productivity and help to encourage more trade between northern cities as well as giving people a wider choice of employment opportunities, encouraging them to stay and work in the region.

“The Government must publish its Integrated Rail Plan immediately and commit to the eastern leg of HS2, Northern Powerhouse Rail and upgrades to the East Coast Main Line.

“Without investment our region’s potential will continue to be held back by out-dated infrastructure. We need Government to be ambitious in its ‘build back better’ programme and commit to investing in transformational projects for the North to build a truly fair recovery.”

Why the North East Runs on Rail

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The railways were born in the North East nearly 200 years ago. Ongoing investment in the industry will help it play a key role for the future, writes Jim Brewin, UK Country Lead for Hitachi Rail.

Our customer East Midlands Railway recently announced the name of their new Hitachi bi-mode train fleet that will be built at our North East factory in Newton Aycliffe.

A public competition selected the name Aurora – heralding a new dawn for passengers in a region commonly associated as the heart of the British rail industry.

Just as East Midlands Railway is celebrating an exciting future, so is the rail industry in the North East.

This is thanks largely to a decade of investment in British train building capabilities – not only with East Midlands Railway, but also the Intercity Express Programme (IEP).

We have recently finished manufacturing the last of our 122 IEP trains at our Country Durham facility – built in only five years by an incredible team.

This has got me thinking about the impact such investments have – not only on the railway, but for its passengers and the communities who support us.

This investment has been important to build back British and North East jobs and skills. At the time, this contract was the biggest UK rail replacement project. The IEP partnership helped Hitachi to commit and invest in Britain.

It’s also been great for passengers – building such capacity and capability has delivered Britain’s most reliable trains. Just last week we saw 6 Hitachi-built trains in the top 10 most reliable nationwide.

This is what levelling up looks like when it’s done right.

Today I’m proud to be part of the team leading Hitachi Rail’s activities in the UK – 2,500 colleagues from Edinburgh to Penzance.

I’m only one of hundreds of others from my local region to have been offered development opportunities thanks to this incredible partnership.

After all, the IEP contract saw the replacement of Britain’s iconic High Speed Trains (HSTs). These are the same trains on which I started my career, and in the same industry my father worked in all his life.

I grew up in the North East, not far from where our Newton Aycliffe factory stands today.

Six years ago when we started to hire for hundreds of new roles at Newton Aycliffe, we knew we had to hire for values, a desire to learn and a drive to get things done right.

On day one of our recruitment campaign, we had thousands of applicants from a diverse range of industries – but very few from rail. We knew that the commitment to training and development would have to come from us – and that is what we’ve done and keep doing every day.

Over the last 12 years, my personal career journey through Hitachi Rail has taken me from the introduction of the Javelin trains on High Speed 1, across five different departments including Engineering, Procurement, Sales and Projects, and now UK Country Lead.

Clearly I’m biased – but it is this access to opportunities and faith in people’s potential which, in my view, makes Hitachi an employer and brand of choice for anyone wanting to join the railway.

Our team is bigger than just Hitachi Rail. We owe a lot to the local supply chain and community too. Our partnership with the local University Technical College is helping to provide next generation engineering skills for the wider regional economy.

Millfield Composites and Hydram Engineering are just two of 130 local suppliers who have grown with us on this journey, benefitting from tens of millions of pounds of investment. Hydram and Millfield supply interior panels direct from their local manufacturing facilities.

A newer Sunderland-based partner – Hyperdrive – is helping us to build the battery technology that will further decarbonise fleets all around the world.

More broadly, the complexity of such programmes is huge. I want to thank the teams at the DfT, the operating companies and Network Rail – as well as passenger and community groups – for holding us to account and partnering with us through the delivery process.

Hitachi Rail itself is also going through transformative growth.

Today we are a fully integrated global provider of rail solutions across rolling stock, signalling, operation, service & maintenance and turnkey systems – spanning 38 countries.

As the global COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact our lives, we are working hard with customers and governments to provide safe, reliable railways that contribute to the economic, environmental and social success of communities around the world.

Despite the clouds, the successful IEP contract delivery and subsequent investment in the North East’s rail industry is evidence of a new dawn for the region’s manufacturing economy – and I’m proud to be part of it.

Jim Brewin
UK Country Lead
Hitachi Rail

North East urgently needs a strong infrastructure

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The announcement of a budget and the publication of the National Infrastructure Strategy in March means it’s an important time for infrastructure investment in the NE.

We have seen that the Treasury has plans to reform the Green Book (the formula used to decide funding for projects) which could help to bring increased investment into our region and help to stop the transport funding gap between London and the North of England.

Grant Shapps, Secretary of State for Transport came to the North East on his first Ministerial visit of 2020 earlier in January. During a meeting with Chamber members he emphasised Green Book reforms would lead to an increased focus on infrastructure projects across the North.

The National Infrastructure Strategy will outline long-term plans for the UK’s transport infrastructure, decarbonisation and digital infrastructure. The key aims of the strategy will include improving connectivity in the UK, increasing productivity and reducing carbon emissions. Our region needs to continue to cooperate and push the message for investment in the North East to take advantage of opportunities on this areas.

We will also continue to campaign for a connected North East including our Fast Track East Coast campaign for essential improvements to the East Coast Mainline.

The Budget will be crucial to see whether the Government commits to key infrastructure projects such as Northern Powerhouse Rail and HS2 with the Oakervee report into HS2 to be released soon.

We also expect to see an increased focus on the environment within this Budget, with plans for more energy efficient homes and investment in carbon capture, as well as sustainability playing an important role in decisions around transport spending.

In terms of housing we can expect reforms to shared ownership, and a housing infrastructure fund, to provide the roads and connections to schools and GPs to help support new housing developments.

As well as this we hope to learn more about plans for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund in the Budget. The fund will act to replace EU structural funding once the UK has left the EU. It is vital that the region continues to have the same access to funding that has helped to fund developments such as Sunderland Software City and Business Central in Darlington.