The South East All-Party Parliamentary Group has published 'THE SOUTH EAST AND ‘GLOBAL BRITAIN’: What role for transport infrastructure in underpinning Britain’s plan to trade and grow?”
EEH was delighted to give evidence to MPs for the inquiry, which has produced a number of strong recommendations:
Recommendation 1: Government must recognise, and act on, the scale of the challenge in enabling the South East region to support trade to grow and maintain a truly Global Britain.
Recommendation 2: Government should consult on an ambitious new target to increase the amount of freight travelling by rail and sea to reduce road traffic congestion and air pollution to the degree desired at local and regional levels.
Recommendation 3: A new holistic, approach to transport planning –informed by local, and sub regional considerations - should be adopted, that promotes greater alignment between the Department for Transport and corresponding cross-departmental priorities including trade, growth, housing, planning and Net Zero.
Recommendation 4: The dependence of local authorities on bidding for unpredictable, competitive central Government pots should be eliminated to increase the efficiency of how taxpayers’ money is spent and rebuild trust between local and central government.
Recommendation 5: Fiscal powers should be devolved to regional (and local) transport bodies to generate the conditions (certainty and reliability) for thriving public-private partnerships to deliver joint transport infrastructure projects from the bottom-up.
Recommendation 6: Government should further invest in and encourage technological innovation to optimise our transport infrastructure.
Recommendation 7: When demand management inevitably surfaces at the forefront of the political agenda, it must work for the South East, Industry, and the Nation.