CLOSURE OF THE ASFORDBY HIGH-SPEED RAILWAY TEST TRACK

Early day motion 1044, tabled 16 November 2005 by Alan Duncan (Conservative). Signed by 39 members.

That this House condemns the decision by the Department for Transport to allow the closure of the Asfordby Railway test track; notes that the loss of the UK's only high speed rail test track is a huge blow to the United Kingdom's rail industry, as future high speed trains will now have to be developed and tested abroad; notes that the loss of the facility will mean that new trains will either have to be tested on the already congested rail network or have to enter service without being fully tested, therefore putting passenger safety at risk; and further notes that the £1.8 million a year required to keep the track open is a fraction of the £6.5 billion in subsidy that the railways will receive this year.

Signatures by party: Conservative 24, Liberal Democrat 7, Labour 4, DUP 3, UUP 1.