Minister for Transport, and Ministers of State, at the Department for Transport

[whole diary]

[chuffed]

ME-owww!

[TonyK]

Not for the first time, there is an absence of Goodwill.

[ellendune]

The new minister is Paul Maynard  MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) for Blackpool  North and Cleveleys.  A a cording to the Dft website

[grahame]

The new minister is Paul Maynard  MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) for Blackpool  North and Cleveleys.  A a cording to the Dft website

Confirmed today at the ACoRP^▸ (Association of Community Rail Partnerships) Member's seminar (South) which was held at the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about), and was addressed by civil servant(s) with brief(s) including community rail.   

[ChrisB]

If its on the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) website, is any confirmation really needed/nessesary?

[onthecushions]

Representing Blackpool N etc one presumes he likes trams, and values 319's over Pacers.

He was on the Transport Select Committee, 2010 - 2012 and was born in Crewe!

Oxford 1st though.

OTC

[grahame]

If its on the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) website, is any confirmation really needed/nessesary?

You'll note that Ellendune's message about the web site was after 7 p.m. (by which time I was in The Watermelon ... the confirmation to the large group I was part of had come some eight hours earlier, with a member of the DfT team telling us who the ministers are now, and giving us a little of their parliamentary, ministerial and shadow backgrounds.   At which point it was rather useful in filling in the picture.

[TonyK]

Representing Blackpool N etc one presumes he likes trams, and values 319's over Pacers.

He was on the Transport Select Committee, 2010 - 2012 and was born in Crewe!

Oxford 1st though.

OTC

I have just returned from Cleveleys, bringing with me my mother, the elder Mrs FT, N!. Heady times are afoot, with the extension of the tram system inland to Blackpool North. It is a good time to be a minister in charge of rail things, and also to be the MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) for Blackpool North and Cleveleys! If you are unfamiliar with the modern trams, here is one:



and this is Cleveleys:




and a link to a discussion forum on the whole thing. It contains a photo of my late, much lamented, dog:

[Chris from Nailsea]

What worries me more is that Theresa May wrote "F. Off" on her papers next to Boris's name and a civil servant misunderstood her meaning. 

There's many a true word spoken in jest, apparently.   From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Minister Greg Clark was briefly given wrong job

Cabinet minister Greg Clark was given the wrong job by mistake during the appointment of Theresa May's new government.

Mr Clark heads up the new Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

He was also appointed President of the Board of Trade before officials realised International Trade Secretary, Liam Fox, should hold the title.

Mr Clark lasted just four days in the historic role.

Once officials realised the mistake, Mr Fox was formally appointed to the position at a meeting of the Privy Council.

A Whitehall source said: "The appointment was an error. The Privy Council meeting was held very quickly after the reshuffle and the final list of ministerial responsibilities had not been produced. The appointment was therefore corrected at the first opportunity."

The mistaken appointment was made days three days before Mrs May told Parliament in a written statement that Mr Fox's new department would "take on the responsibilities of UK^▸ (United Kingdom) Trade and Investment (and) the relevant trade functions of the former Department for Business Innovation and Skills".

The Board of Trade - which is still formally named "The Committee of Privy Council for Trade and Foreign Plantations" - was established in the 17th Century by the King as a rival to Parliament to manage British trade, particularly in the American colonial plantations.

William Pitt created the job of president in 1786. After the board was folded into the modern-day Department of Trade and Industry in 1970, the historic board has met only once, in 1986, to mark its 200th anniversary.

Lord Heseltine chose to be known as President of the Board of Trade when he was appointed to John Major's cabinet in 1992, instead of Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.

[onthecushions]

There's also this:

http://www.pwrs.org/

Good luck to them.

OTC

[grahame]

There's also this:

http://www.pwrs.org/

Good luck to them.

OTC

One of a number of late closures where the decision to is much lamented and was probably the wrong decision - at least for 21st Century.    Add Oxford - Cambridge, Taunton - Minehead, Wareham - Swanage,  Paignton - Kingswear and Barnstaple Junction - Ilfracombe in our area.

[IndustryInsider]

I have just returned from Cleveleys, bringing with me my mother, the elder Mrs FT, N!. Heady times are afoot, with the extension of the tram system inland to Blackpool North. It is a good time to be a minister in charge of rail things, and also to be the MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) for Blackpool North and Cleveleys!

I took a first trip ever on the tram outside of Blackpool itself to head all the way to Fleetwood earlier in the year.  Although Fleetwood didn't exactly blow my mind, it provided a very pleasant place to have some lunch and it was clear how important the tram is to the town with all services pretty well patronised.  Whether the new minister will be able to influence any decision on the reinstatement of the heavy rail line from Fleetwood via Thornton to Poulton is very much a different matter though - indeed perhaps that could be converted to a tram route?  It is a rail route that travels through pretty much built up areas throughout so would, in my mind, be an excellent candidate to do something with other than provide a short distance of heritage railway.

I'm sure the tram extention to Blackpool North will be very well received and provide a boost to passenger numbers, which rose by over 20% last year, so it won't be long before frequencies need to be increased.  It was also nice to see two of the heritage trams running up and down between North Pier and Cabin, although having seen several services operated by them I hardly saw any passengers on board!

[chuffed]

The new modern trams accept bus passes. The vintage trams attract a premium fare. One would think it ought to be the other way round!

[IndustryInsider]

The new modern trams accept bus passes.

I certainly couldn't complain about the value - I got a 24 hour pass for a fiver which allowed me a return bus trip to Lytham as well as my jaunt to Fleetwood.

[onthecushions]

Whether the new minister will be able to influence any decision on the reinstatement of the heavy rail line from Fleetwood via Thornton to Poulton is very much a different matter though - indeed perhaps that could be converted to a tram route?  It is a rail route that travels through pretty much built up areas throughout so would, in my mind, be an excellent candidate to do something with other than provide a short distance of heritage railway.

Dual voltage and mixed LR/HR^▸ (Human Resources) running - but imagine through working onto Metrolink (GM tram network) - Altrincham to Fleetwood!

OTC