‘GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO GIVE MORE BACKING TO TRANSPORT INVESTMENT IN THE SOUTH EAST’ ASSEMBLY TO TELL PUBLIC EXAMINATION

THERE IS A CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE ABOUT GOVERNMENT’S COMMITMENT to transport investment in the region, the South East England Regional Assembly will tell a Regional Transport Strategy (RTS) Public Examination in Reading on Monday (21 July).

Although the Assembly has set out a comprehensive regional framework, supported by stakeholders, which allows for better meeting the transport needs of the South East, it will not be delivered without a clearer commitment by Government.

A MORI opinion survey, commissioned by the Assembly as part of its RTS consultation process, showed that transport, and congestion in particular, is almost on a par with crime as the key issue for South East residents, but the belief in Government’s ability to improve the situation is lacking.

"There have been too many new initiatives, too many grand new plans, too many promises, and not sufficient commitment to delivery," Assembly Planning and Transport Director Mike Gwilliam will tell the Public Examination in his opening statement on Monday afternoon at the Hexagon Theatre, Reading.

"Furthermore, recent events have revealed a fundamental problem: the credibility of the process. We have recently received the Government’s decision on four key Multi-Modal Studies covering the region. Although these announcements contain positive news on specific schemes, their overall message is depressing. The decisions focus on road investments with little commitment to public transport improvements. They do not reflect the balanced approach to investment recommended by all the studies."

"This imbalance is graphically illustrated by the Minister’s rejection of most of the South Coast Multi-Modal Study proposals. In the words of the Assembly Chair, ‘the Secretary of State has got it completely wrong ’," Mike Gwilliam will tell the panel.

The draft RTS sets out an extensive list of transport requirements, which reflects the scale of pressures facing the South East’s transport system and the need to redress years of under-investment in what is a key asset for the region and the UK. However measures such as better quality travel planning and advice will not remove the need for further substantial and sustained investment in the transport system.

Mike Gwilliam will emphasise the unique importance of transport in the South East as

• The largest English region, with a regional economy that has a GDP of £140 billion
  
  
• The international gateway between the UK and the rest of the world, as well as the gateway for the international business community to the rest of Europe – via Heathrow and Gatwick
  
  
• Having the busiest commercial ferry port in North West Europe, access to the only fixed link between the UK and continental Europe and the second largest deep-sea container port in the UK.

Contact

Lesley van Dijk, PR Executive - 01483 555223

Alex Butlin, PR Executive - 01483 555221

Notes to editors:

1. The Regional Assembly is the “voluntary regional chamber” for the South East. It was established in January 1999 to give a representative voice to the South East region which covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East and West Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, and Surrey.
2. The Assembly is made up of 111 members including elected councillors nominated by the region’s local authorities and 37 representatives from other sectors of the community (including business, trades unions, education, housing, health, sports, culture, tourism, faith groups, environmental, community and voluntary organisations).
3. The Assembly has three areas of core business:
1. It is the representative voice of the South East, engaging and representing its member organisations and, through them, the wider public.
2. The Assembly has a specific role under the Regional Development Agencies' Act 1998 to ensure the accountability of the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) to the region.
3. The Assembly has been the Regional Planning Body for the South East since April 2001. It has responsibility for proposing strategic planning and transport policies to Government.

Last updated: 21 August 2007