TSC inquires into Rail 2020 - 19th June 2012

This from the Transport Select Committee...

Transport Committee

Select Committee Announcement

Oral evidence – RAIL 2020

Tuesday 19 June 2012

Room tbc

Witnesses:

10.05 am

 ·        Sir Roy McNulty, Chairman, Rail Value for Money Study*

·         Graham Smith MBE, Team Leader, Rail Value for Money Study

10.55 am

 ·        Tim O’Toole CBE, Chairman, Rail Delivery Group

·         Sir David Higgins, Vice-Chairman, Rail Delivery Group

11.50 am

          Mick Whelan, General Secretary, ASLEF

·         Bob Crow, General Secretary, RMT

·         Manuel Cortes, General Secretary, TSSA

·         [witness to be confirmed] UNITE

ENDS

Villiers vignettes - IEP numbers

This from Cruella yesterday...

Maria Eagle (Garston and Halewood, Labour)
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate her Department has made of the minimum order of intercity express programme carriages which would be needed to justify a UK assembly facility.
   
Theresa Villiers (Minister of State (Rail and Aviation)
The Department for Transport welcomes the decision by Hitachi to build a new factory at Newton Aycliffe in County Durham where the new trains will be assembled. 

The minimum order of IEP carriages which would be needed to justify a UK assembly facility is a matter for Hitachi, and not the Department, to decide.
 

Quite so minister, quite so.

But then why did DfT tell Sir Andrew Foster's review that a build of 685 vehicles justified a possible UK manufacturing facility?

Peace on the Line? That's the way to do it!

Eye's Independent Correspondent writes...

I attended the Mid-Hants 'War on the Line' event at the weekend, to research my new book 'Action Stations! How Britain's railways won the war'. 

Happily, neither Goering or Goebbels were in attendance! (Perhaps the organisers have been reading Railway Eye? Ed)

Though fans of the period could have their hair done on Alresford station in 1940s wartime style, with lacquer and rollers for £15.  

Put that light out!