HANDBAGS AT 50 YARDS

The latest bout of handbags between the current Con Dem Westminster Government and the Labour in Wales Government over just exactly who is going to pay what for railway electrification in Wales (and who said what?) is depressing to say the least. There is a convenient manufactured feel about it, with both sides scoring easy political points at our  expense and once again failing to get the electrification of the valley lines project started.

I suspect that but for the increasingly nominal difference in ideology then the Welsh Government in Cardiff would not even be asking Westminster to stump up the cash for electrifying the valley lines. Neither the Westminster government or the Welsh government are serving Wales well or let alone standing up for our interests being too busy having yet another convenient spat.

Plaid is actively campaigning to ensure that Wales gets its fair share of funding from the England-only HS2 project. Plaid has also successfully campaigned to make sure that the electrification programme for the Great Western region was extended beyond Bristol (the original limit for electrification as quietly proposed by the last New Labour government in Westminster).

Sadly it is now becoming clear that the Labour in Wales Government is too weak to stand up to Westminster and its failure to secure a written agreement from the UK Government that the Treasury would cover the costs of electrifying the Valley lines may suggest a more than a degree of incompetence. Until a definitive agreement is reached and signed, then the delays will continue and our country will continue to miss out on millions of pounds of funding that could transform our transport infrastructure, connect our communities, and create a rail network fit for the 21^st rather than the 19^thcentury.

Speaking on Tuesday Plaid Cymru’s Jonathan Edwards MP  said:

“Wales historically receives only a fraction of our population share in transport infrastructure which explains why our road and rail networks are so poor.  We are the only country in the whole of the European continent that does not currently have a single mile of electrified rail track, apart from Albania. This is why electrifying our existing network is so important, but in effect it would only lead to Wales catching up with other parts of the UK.

“Both the UK and Welsh governments have claimed credit for moves to electrify the Valleys lines without agreeing on how it will be paid for.  The posturing by both administrations is putting the project – and the economic benefits that would follow – at risk.  Once again we have Westminster taking Wales for a ride and unfortunately the Labour government is too weak to stand up and protect the interest of Wales.  Labour are also guilty of gross incompetence, basing their position on a TV interview by the Prime Minister rather than the fine detail of correspondence between both Administrations.   

“The truth is that, if the Labour Welsh Government got behind Plaid Cymru’s campaign for a fair share of HS2 funding for Wales – a figure which could be as high as £4bn according to some estimates – then this tiff would be academic.   Instead, the Labour Government blindly follow the position of their Labour masters in London, despite independent economic assessments indicating that HS2 would hit the South Wales economy particularly hard.

“Rather than engage in tedious tit-for-tat exchanges between Westminster and Cardiff Bay, Plaid Cymru is interested in securing fair and sustainable funding for Wales’ railways in order to transform our transport infrastructure and create a network fit for purpose.

“The line between Glasgow and London was electrified forty years ago. Once again, the Westminster elite are happy to treat Wales as a second class nation.

“Carrying out rail policy on the basis of ‘doing deals’ project-by-project is a recipe for disaster, as this row has clearly shown. It is not the way rail policy is done in Scotland and Northern Ireland, where transport infrastructure is devolved where there are much better levels of rail investment.

“If the people of Wales want improved services, quicker journeys and better-connected communities, they should back Plaid Cymru’s efforts to secure fair transport funding for our nation. This Labour and Tory spat shows that the Westminster parties cannot be trusted to act in the Welsh national interest.”

HS2, 5%, WALES AND THE UNION

The much publicised Westminster government's plans to extend the HS2 rail development to Manchester (Stage 2) has stirred up a whole range of reactions in England from approval to objections and much in between. This investment focuses on creating a high speed rail spine in England from London to Birmingham and then onto Manchester and Leeds.

The Scottish Government has rightly called for a "concrete timetable" to extend the HS2 high-speed rail network to Edinburgh and Glasgow, calling on the UK Department for Transport to clearly spell out when high-speed rail project would reach Scotland. Fair play to Scotland Now that’s fair enough but what about Wales, will we see any benefits (fringe or otherwise)? Over to the Welsh Government then... ?

Labour in Wales’s less than eloquent silence aside, the bottom line is quite simple if unionists want the union to work for all of its inhabitants then what’s Wales’s share of the investment in the transport infrastructure programme. The Westminster Government has to ensure that any investment in transport infrastructure must benefit the whole of the UK, not just England. If the unionists believe in fair funding for the constituent parts of the UK then Wales is owed a Barnett consequential of approximately £1.9 billion from the projected HS2 spend.

If David Cameron is serious about making the union work then it’s time that this Westminster Government to urgently review the flawed and unfair funding arrangements. The lack of investment (and lack vision) that exists when it comes to developing and improving Welsh transport links that goes way beyond the current (and historical) poor financial settlement. The electrification of the great western line from Swansea to Cardiff (and beyond) is significant but is long overdue.

The electrification of the Glasgow-London line was completed in 1974, if nothing else this highlights how far behind (if not out of sight and out of mind) we are in terms of any improvements to transport links. It is also worth noting that Liverpool has long had an electrified rail link to London and has scarcely benefited economically from it. The commitment to electrify the Valley lines is a major step forward, but, as yet Wales, Albania and Moldova have no electrified railways at all.

If we are serious about delivering reliable, effective and sustainable all weather communications to our communities then it’s time to consider reopening old railway lines to passenger and rail freight. Reopening the old railway lines between Llangefni on Anglesey, Caernarfon to Bangor, Aberdare and Hirwaun (in the Cynon valley) and Usk (via Little Mill) to the main line and between Builth Road to Builth would make a real difference.

Having a minor let alone a major infrastructure investment policy that functions outside of England would demonstrate that this Westminster Government is actually serious about making the union work for all its inhabitants. Investing in our public transport system would reduce carbon emissions and cut road congestion. Reopening and refurbishing our old railways and upgrading our existing lines for passenger and fright traffic could provide serious economic stimulation to the local economies and provide a real opportunity for our people.

HIGH SPEED RAIL CONSULTATION

The Westminster government is to begin its consultation on the proposed high-speed rail line from London to Birmingham. The new route would cut journey times by around half an hour, with work due to begin in 2015 if the plan is approved and might cost £17 billion. Meanwhile the Con Dems are deferring (avoiding to you and me) making any decision on upgrading and electrifying the Swansea to London railway line...

FIGHTING FOR WALES

I do wish that the nominal Welsh Secretary of State, Cheryl Gillan, the Chesham and Amersham MP (and one of a group of Conservatives who have raised concerns over the plans to build a high-speed rail line between London and Birmingham) would put as much effort into fighting for Wales as she has fighting against the proposed rail route through her constituency. It is a real pity she did not put as much effort into fighting to get the electrification and upgrade of the Swansea to London rail-link.

TIME TO MOVE ON

The Con Dem Westminster Government's failure to stump up the cash for the electrification of the rail line between Swansea (originally Bristol) and London Paddington, a project that the last New Labour Government only considered in the last two years of Government (one does wonder what they were doing in the previous eleven years at times), is disappointing. One lesson that we should have learned by now is that we cannot rely on any Westminster Government to deliver for Wales.

The long awaited reinstatement of the rail link from Rogerstone to Newport, dependent on Network Rail's feasibility study which be announced in March 2011. Even with limited financial resources (a 0.78 billion transport budget) the National Assembly has committed itself to getting the job done – this commitment needs to become firm action next year, along with a new station in Ebbw Vale town.

In the South East, we need railway stations at Caerleon and Magor and better facilities for passengers and more stopping services at Severn Tunnel, Chepstow and Abergavenny along with secure park and ride schemes and better integration of local bus services. Serious consideration needs to be given to reopening the line from Little Mill to Usk. It's time to move on...