The Shadow Transport Secretary has challenged the lack of action being taken by the Government to help stop Hitachi closing.

Louise Haigh attacked Transport Secretary Mark Harper for refusing to commit to any action, adding that if the County Durham train building facility closes it would be an "abdication" of duty.

In a lengthy letter, she calls for action that could be taken to help the 700 factory workers whose jobs in Newton Aycliffe are at risk.

Ms Haigh says she is responding to an open letter posted on X on March 29 by Mr Harper. She says that in his letter, he refused to commit to taking action to protect at-risk jobs both at Hitachi’s factory in Newton Aycliffe and at Alstom’s rail manufacturing factory in Derby, or acknowledge his Government’s role in the crisis.

In her letter to the Transport Secretary, Ms Haigh has reiterated Labour’s calls for Ministers to act and do everything they can to back the UK's rail manufacturing industry and protect workers against job losses.

She claims that rail reform is "simply not a priority" for Mr Harper and accuses the Government of sending a clear signal that it "has no plan for the future of UK rail".

"It is small wonder that, faced with an increasingly uncertain outlook in the UK rail sector, investors are starting to look elsewhere," she says.

Shemakes the case that Ministers do have the power to vary contract specifications and describes the failure to do so as "an abdication of responsibility for protecting high-skilled jobs in a key domestic manufacturing sector".

The Northern Echo: Louise Haigh

Ms Haigh adds: "Given the chaotic approach to managing the railways we have seen from this Government over the last few years, I would not blame investors for seeking cast-iron guarantees before making commercial decisions."

She accuses the Government of consistently failing to act to help safeguard jobs, adding: "Despite repeated warnings from the industry, you remain complacent."

The Northern Echo campaigned ten years ago to bring the factory to the region, and is now urging the Government to keep it on track by extending a vital contract to secure its future.

The shadow minister has added her voice to the campaign, joining numerous politicians, former transport secretaries, business leaders and unions in the region, including Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer.

Real concerns have been growing since Hitachi bosses revealed last month they had failed to reach an agreement with the Government to keep their order books full.

The factory, which opened in 2015, is making its final trains for Avanti West Coast and East Midlands Railway.

Ministers have told Hitachi they had no plans to order more trains to run on the West Coast mainline, which the firm saw as the only viable way to plug the production gap.

You can read the full letter by Louise Haigh below:

Dear Secretary of State,

Thank you for your letter dated 29 March.

You raise the complexity of the rail manufacturing market, but fail to acknowledge the significant role the Government – through you, as the relevant Secretary of State – plays in creating a stable investment environment.

Not only has this Conservative Government failed to put in place a credible, long-term industrial strategy, it also regularly creates uncertainty for businesses wanting to invest in the UK. Nowhere is this more apparent than in rail – a sector where the Government exerts significant influence over the market.

Plans for rail reform have stalled since 2021, when the Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail was published. Despite the significant consensus across the sector on the urgent need for reform of our failing rail system, the Government has chosen to introduce a Rail Reform Bill only in draft form in this parliamentary session, with no plans to legislate before the next election.

This is a clear signal that rail reform is simply not a priority for you. [5] Taken together, these delays send a clear signal to the market – that this Government has no plan for the future of UK rail. It is small wonder that, faced with an increasingly uncertain outlook in the UK rail sector, investors are starting to look elsewhere.

Current rail contracts also clearly show that the Government has ultimate sign off over all major capital expenditure incurred by train operators, including rolling stock procurement.

The Rail Minister confirmed this in an answer to a written parliamentary question earlier this year: “The procurement of rolling stock is led by train operating companies. Under the previous franchising process this may have formed part of a successful bid. However, under the new operating contract model, operators still lead on the procurement and specification process, but the final business case is subject to a governance review by the Department and HM Treasury.”

Similarly, Ministers do have the power to vary contract specifications, as the Department for Transport is the ultimate tendering authority. In the case of the Intercity Express Programme procurement, Ministers made variations more than once.

Claiming that the Government does not exert a degree of control over train operators’ procurement choices is therefore disingenuous at best. At worst, it is an abdication of responsibility for protecting high-skilled jobs in a key domestic manufacturing sector. The Government has a strategic role to play in protecting vital UK industries, and currently, it is failing this one.

Your letter to me also referenced £3.6bn in possible future orders for Northern, SouthEastern, Chiltern, TransPennine Express and Great Western Railway. What you neglect to say is that these are at early market engagement stage only – not a single one is at Invitation to Tender stage, therefore providing no certainty to UK-based manufacturers that they will go ahead. And given the chaotic approach to managing the railways we have seen from this Government over the last few years, I would not blame investors for seeking cast-iron guarantees before making commercial decisions.

It takes years from contract award for a train to reach the production line, so it is not surprising that endemic delays to procurement are leading to production gaps. You state that HS2 Ltd has confirmed that the original order of 54 trains for Phase 1 remains unchanged, but omit that neither Alstom or Hitachi have been given a confirmed delivery schedule.

This means that neither company, or the companies in their supply chains, are able to plan effectively nor assess when the production gaps at Derby and Newton Aycliffe will end. This uncertainty flows directly from the changes HS2 Ltd is having to make to the project following your decision to descope the project last year.

I saw for myself the impact this is already having on levels of work at Alstom’s Derby factory when I visited it earlier this week. Will you now confirm to both companies and their staff the exact timings of HS2 rolling stock delivery?

Ultimately, while the issues at hand are indeed complex and have developed over several years, what is very clear is that this Government has consistently failed to act to help safeguard jobs. Despite repeated warnings from the industry, you remain complacent.

The situation at Litchurch Lane Derby specifically is reaching a critical moment, with the re-opening of a significant redundancy programme imminent. I am therefore asking you to set out what action you are taking to work with Alstom to safeguard the future of this site and its business in the UK.

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There is no excuse for the uncertainty that Government inaction to date has caused in the rail supply chain – at significant cost to staff, who now fear for their livelihood, and investor confidence in the UK rail sector.

Ministers must act and do everything they can to back our rail industry and protect workers against job losses.

Given the public interest in this matter I will be releasing this letter to the press.