Eye salutes our brave and clever firemen!

This just in from 'Is 1A03 out of Chester yet, Bert?'...

Apologies if you've seen this before but it is definitely worthy of a wider showing.



Good effort!

Another 'C' word the Government can't say.

Not 'Cuts' this time.

Nor indeed Lord Mandy's reported use of the word 'Chump' (sic) to a News International executive

This emasculated written response from the Noble Lord, given on the 5th October:

Lord Bradshaw (Liberal Democrat)

To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Lord Adonis on 29 June (WA 22), when the procurement process for 202 new diesel train carriages will be advanced sufficiently for an order to be placed.

Lord Adonis (Secretary of State, Department for Transport; Labour)

On 23 July the Government announced a major £1.1 billion programme of rail electrification on the Great Western Main Line and the line between Liverpool and Manchester. This radically affects the requirements for rolling stock over the next decade.

There will be far less need for diesel trains and a greater requirement for electric trains, as a result of which the procurement of 202 new diesel train carriages has now been superseded. The Government will publish a. new rolling stock plan in the autumn, taking account of the changed circumstances.

So why can't Lord Adonis use the word 'Cancelled'?

UPDATE: This from a Mr Saltaire...

I seem to recollect that the DfT started this procurement farce under the premise of “urgent operational need”.

Since the Great Western electrification won’t be sufficiently complete to allow existing EMUs and DMUs to be cascaded until 2016 at the earliest, the “urgent operational need” is likely to remain for quite some time.

Unless…. the word superseded is taken literally (it means replaced, NOT cancelled), in which case perhaps the Government will use the existing procurement process (which has been superseded, but not cancelled remember… keep up!!) to provide the good people of the Thames Valley and Northern England with some nice shiny new trains so that they can sit down on their way to and from work each day.