Andrew Ranger MP: speeches

Speeches

• 26 Feb 2026 · St David’s Day and Welsh Affairs · Hansard source

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  Diolch yn fawr, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is a real pleasure to speak in my second St David’s day debate in this Chamber. I begin by thanking my hon. Friend the Member for Newport West and Islwyn (Ruth Jones), Chair of the Select Committee, and the hon. Member for Ceredigion Preseli (Ben Lake) for securing this debate today. The story of St David began about 1,500 years ago, when, in the wake of the Roman empire’s departure from Britain, a unique Welsh identity began to take shape—one identity around community, language, culture and a resilience that lives on today. There is no better place to see that identity in action than Wrexham this weekend. At 12.40 on Sunday, the bells will ring out from St Giles church, marking an end to the traditional St David’s day church service and the beginning of our now regular St David’s day parade. The parade will be led by the Cambria band. It brings an array of colour and music to our streets, with community groups, schools and other organisations all playing their part. All weekend, there will be special events, including St David’s day markets in Queen’s Square and the surrounding area, where our fantastic local businesses and independent traders offer delightful products, food and drink, including what I am sure are the best Welsh cakes across the whole of Wales.

• 22 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (Fourth sitting) · Hansard source

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  The debate around the devolution of rail in Wales is absolutely worthy of further consideration, but I am not convinced that it would be right to do so as part of this Bill, which surely has to reflect the current situation, as the Minister is rightly pointing out. We heard evidence from a Transport for Wales official that they really welcomed the partnership working between the UK Government, the Welsh Government and TfW, as well as future collaboration and the work that has been done on the heads of terms for the memorandum of understanding. They felt that the progress made is moving us towards a different scenario, but we need to work with the situation as it stands now.

• 20 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q On the devolution aspect, how does the Bill reflect the interests of passengers and businesses’ needs, particularly in Wales, and ensure that the Welsh Government have sufficient input into decision making? Keir Mather: The Bill requires the Secretary of State to obtain the consent of Scottish and Welsh Ministers before they issue a direction that directly affects passenger services. That means that there is a robust ability for the devolved Administrations to play their role in thinking about how we have joined-up services. In Wrexham and across north Wales that is incredibly important, as we go through into north-west England. It is also important that GBR is able to carry out work across the four nations that does not conflict with the aspirations of the devolved Administrations to pursue their own rail ambitions. For example, the Scottish Government have stated very clearly that they want to pursue a vertically integrated railway. GBR needs to complement the aspirations of the devolved Administrations and create close bases on which we work. I am really pleased to say that it seems that, from a Scottish Government perspective, they are happy with the balances and accountability measures in the Bill. They think—I would not want to put words in their mouth, but they can correct me if I am wrong—that it forms a strong bedrock upon which we can start to take these conversations forward.

• 20 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q I live in north-east Wales, but across many other parts of the country the complexity of cross-border services is also significant. In the Welsh case, the Welsh Government own TfW, which carries out lots of services in north-west England and Manchester; there are other such examples around the country. Are the mechanisms in the Bill appropriate for managing those complexities? What about the implied extra level of agreement and the working with different bodies, such as mayoralties, local authorities and the new devolution going on around the country? I would be interested in your views. Peter McDonald: The Welsh Government view is that the primary legislation is taking a reasonable approach. There are a couple of extra, non-legislative layers to reflect on. The first is the provisions of the memorandum of understanding, which I will keep coming back to. That is really important for cross-border partnership. Then there is the culture of effective partnership. Currently, a large number of Transport for Wales and Network Rail officials and employees work together collaboratively; we want that to continue and think that can improve. We think there are lessons from the alliance model in Scotland. This is almost leaving the constitution at the door; it is more about a proper culture of partnership between the two organisations. We think that can be best led by an empowered and distinct Wales and borders business unit. That is not necessarily a matter for primary legislation, but it is really important for how this will operate on the ground.

• 20 Jan 2026 · Railways Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q I want to build on the points about mayors and the mayoral authorities, in the context of the devolved nations. There is a really complex picture there, particularly with cross-border travel and the different ownership of companies that may operate across the border. Do you think the Bill covers that adequately and can cope with the challenges? Keith Williams: It is a great question. The issue, of course, is cross-border; for example, trains go from London into Wales, and similarly into Scotland. Giving total devolution was something that we looked at. There is so much cross-border traffic that you need to take that into account, so we left the devolved positions largely as they were. Richard Brown: The Bill is pretty clear in setting out the roles and responsibilities of the Secretary of State and the devolved Administrations. In practice, these things will always need to be based on collaboration between the different organisations, which is the way you run a railway. There are inherent tensions between, for example, what the Welsh Government might want in terms of cross-border services and what might actually be affordable and in the interests of passengers, competition for capacity use, and so on. All of that will be within GBR to, not adjudicate, but work its way through, produce solutions and, where there are options, put those to the Secretary of State and the Welsh Government, for instance. Out of that will possibly come a compromise, because not everybody will get what they want from the railway. There are too many competing people wanting different things from the railway. The great news is that all of that responsibility to co-ordinate and produce a plan for the most effective use of capacity for the different users is put on one body rather than being split between the Department for Transport, ORR and Network Rail, as it is now.

• 9 Dec 2025 · Railways Bill · Hansard source

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  I completely agree. That will be crucial to improving services for everybody. We have a renewed deal for Welsh customers as well. The inclusion of a memorandum of understanding means that there will be a shared understanding and shared objectives across funding, access and track integration. Crucially for Wrexham, it also means that there will be an aligned cross-border framework for governance and funding, reflecting how crucial these services are to our local communities and economies and their ability to succeed. Alongside that, I am delighted that there will be a dedicated business unit in Great British Railways both obligated and empowered to work with Transport for Wales to deliver the best possible offering. That shows that it does not need to be an either/or when it comes to working relationships with partners. With the right structures and the shared ambition we are already seeing in Wales, we have two thirds of journeys on brand-new trains, a 20% rise in passenger journeys and a plan for Network North Wales, delivering outcomes that genuinely put passengers first. This legislation captures the full spirit of devolution. As we have heard, it recognises not only devolved Governments, but mayoral authorities. The duty to consult them on major decisions gives local leaders the ability to shape what they know works best for their areas. That builds on the success we have already seen through things such as the Bee Network, bus franchising in the midlands, and Merseytravel, moving us a step closer to a fully integrated transport system across the country. Finally, I will reflect on the wider implications of what good rail means, particularly for our young people. It means opportunity to access experiences and chances to broaden horizons and career prospects which go on to make a huge difference in their lives and outcomes. I look forward to following the Bill as it progresses through the House and delivers for our constituents.