Secretary of State – 18 August Trade unions, government and businesses do not have to be at loggerheads. During the pandemic, this Government protected millions of jobs and tens of thousands of businesses with an economic package endorsed by unions and business groups. When P&O Ferries shamefully sacked 800 of their staff with no warning, […]
Secretary of State – 21st July Four years ago, a World Cup Final between France and Croatia, taking place nearly 2000 miles away, brought train services across parts of the North to a standstill. This absurd situation, where train operator Northern cancelled 170 services, was due to a century-old voluntary Sunday working practice. People’s ability […]
Secretary of State – 8th June Social media has improved our lives in so many ways. But it has also taught us that having easy access to a vast supply of information doesn’t necessarily make us better informed. The internet is awash with false claims and inaccurate stories which people believe if they read them […]
Secretary of State Grant Shapps: 17 May, 2022 In 1285 in Ockham, Surrey, a monk called William was born. The humble theologian proffered that “Entities are not to be multiplied without necessity.” In plain English, this defines that for the most part, the solution to a problem is usually the simplest one. For many people […]
Secretary of State 4 April Driffield in the East Riding of Yorkshire has a long and proud military history. Its airfield was used by the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War to combat Zeppelin airships. In the 1930s, it became a base for Bomber Command, and at the height of the Battle of […]
Secretary of State – 16th March 2022 In six months’ time, Yorkshire will celebrate the 150th anniversary of a little-known event that was pivotal in shaping our modern democracy. In August 1872, voters at the Pontefract by-election became the first in British parliamentary history to cast their ballots in secret, in a bid to stamp […]
Secretary of State – 23th February 2022 Oscar Wilde famously defined a cynic as someone who “knows the price of everything, and the value of nothing.” In other words, some people will find fault for fault’s sake, deliberately overlooking the benefits so they can carry on having an unearned grumble. It’s an adage which has […]
Secretary of State – 17 February 2022 In just eight years’ time we will celebrate a British first – the 200th anniversary of the world’s first intercity rail service between Manchester and Liverpool, an event which ushered in the railway age and changed transport for ever. The huge success of this first line sparked a frenzied […]
Secretary of State Grant Shapps: 19 January, 2022 Dealing with criticism is part and parcel of running Britain’s railways. People hold passionate views about how train services can be managed and improved, and I welcome all opinions, as long as they are informed and constructive. However, when they are spectacularly wrong, politically motivated, or likely […]
Secretary of State Grant Shapps: 22 December, 2021 When our Integrated Rail Plan came out last month, it set two records. The first was for the amount of public money spent on railways – a whopping £96 billion – every penny of it being spent in the Midlands and North, supporting connectivity and creating new […]