Tees Valley MPs debate in campaign for british railways HQ

MPs from across the Tees Valley appeared in a debate tabled by Darlington’s MP Peter Gibson, outlining Darlington’s bid to house the new facility.

The state owned GBR is a move by the government to reform the railway system, with Transport Secretary Grant Shapps launching a competition to decide where the new headquarters will be.

It’s designed to ensure decisions about the railway are brought closer to the passengers and communities they serve, with a new centralised public body uniting control of infrastructure and train services.

The government says the competition will recognise towns and cities with a rich railway history that are strongly linked to the network.

Read more: Leaders accuse Government rail plans of ignoring North East

Peter Gibson MP

Speaking in Parliament Mr Gibson quoted Edward Pease, the founder of the railways: “thou must think of Darlington; remember it was Darlington sent for thee.”

He said: “Edward was a visionary who used infrastructure as the basis for levelling up. However, for too long, those words and Darlington’s position as the birthplace of the railways have been overlooked and ignored.

“In the 1970s, the National Railway Museum was tipped to be located in Darlington, but was instead opened in York. In 2004, a new museum was opened at Shildon. Both decisions robbed Darlington of hundreds of thousands of visitors.

“I am told that, at the time, a councillor is reported to have said, ‘we want nowt more to do with trains’. However, I am pleased that that attitude has changed, with firm backing from Conservative-led Darlington Borough Council and with cross-party interest in protecting and restoring our railway heritage.

“Despite those oversights, Darlington’s ingenuity and expertise have not waned, and many of my constituents are already working in the railway industry or in skilled engineering and administrative jobs.”

However Stockton’s MPs, Labour’s Alex Cunningham and Tory Matt Vickers, appeared top upstage the Darlington MP’s impassioned plea to call for the new HQ to be housed in Stockton instead.

Mr Cunningham said Stockton is the “real home of the railways” and would help level up the town.

“Our message from Tees Valley is that we want it in the Tees Valley,” he said.

Read more: North East MPs react to scrapped rail plans in the North

Michael Portillo endorses Stockton's Great British Railway headquarters bid. Pictured (left) with Matt Vickers MP

Mr Vickers said the town’s “incredible, committed, hard-working, high-skilled, dedicated, dynamic workforce” could be employed by the Department for Transport should it bring Great British Railways to Stockton

He added: “Levelling up is about spreading opportunity the length and breadth of the country.

“Darlington has its Treasury jobs, and York has its Cabinet Office jobs. Is it not about time that Great British Railways came home to Stockton?”

But Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris is yet to announce where the new railway base will be and said he is also considering multiple other applications.

He said the government aims to create “a world-class railway that works seamlessly as part of a wider transport network, delivering opportunities across Great Britain.”

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