Text of appointment letter - Secretary of State for Transport
I wanted to reaffirm how delighted I am to welcome you to the Cabinet, and to thank you for accepting the appointment of Secretary of State for Transport and for Scotland. The purpose of this letter is to set out the challenges ahead for Government and in particular for your Department.
As a Government the key overarching domestic challenges for us are to build on our unprecedented record of economic achievement ensuring our country can compete and win in the global knowledge economy, to take key decisions in the coming period to ensure the long term security and prosperity of our country and its people, to sustain the momentum of public service modernisation showing how investment and the programme of reform is delivering real improvements for ordinary hard working families; and to underline our Government's commitment to social justice through policies to expand opportunity and tackle the most deep seated causes and symptoms of social exclusion. Given this context, I am asking all Secretaries of State to identify the key challenges for their Departments and how they propose to deliver against these.
An efficient and reliable transport system is essential for our economy and future competitiveness. This is why we have committed to record levels of investment in transport by 2015 in DfT's long-term spending guideline. The results of this investment are evident. More people are travelling by rail than at any time in the past forty years, while performance is back at pre-Hatfield levels and continues to improve. Thirty five major road schemes have been completed since 2001 and we have seen progress in bus travel in recent years.
We need to continue to build on this record. But we also need to demonstrate that we are addressing the fundamental challenges ahead for transport. As the population grows, and we become more wealthy, our demand for travel is increasing. Many parts of our road and rail network are already under severe pressure especially at peak times. While we have set out clear plans for future investment, constraints on public expenditure mean we cannot simply build our way out of these problems. And the benefits transport can deliver must also be measured against its impact on the environment; in particular transport will be critical to our long-term goal of reducing carbon emissions.
The key over-arching challenge for you therefore is to ensure that we have a clear policy for the future which sets out how our long-term transport strategy supports economic growth and development, meets the public need for transport and is consistent with our environmental goals. In developing this you will want to build on the work Rod Eddington is doing on priorities for investment in transport infrastructure. You will also need to work closely in particular with David Miliband, Alistair Darling, and Ruth Kelly to ensure that our transport strategy is consistent with government policies in relation to the environment, energy and housing. Of particular urgency will be ensuring that DfT has contributed fully to the Energy Review, which reports in June.
The other particular challenges I would like you to focus on are as follows:
Managing demand for road transport and ensuring we get the best out of our existing network are vital. We therefore need to advance the debate on the introduction of a national road-user charging scheme. The successful roll-out of local schemes funded from the Transport Innovation Fund will be critical. I would like you to identify the other key steps for the successful introduction of road-user charging within the next decade.
We need to set out how we propose to take forward our plans for the aviation sector and airport expansion in the progress report on the Air Transport White Paper we expect to publish by the end of 2006.
We need to develop a clear-long term strategy for the future of Rail by Summer 2007, including an assessment of future investment levels, how we can continue to improve rail performance, and options for increasing capacity in the network.
We need to ensure the White Paper on local government reform provides a firm basis from which to develop and implement proposals for improvements in local transport governance. I would like you to work closely with Ruth Kelly on this.
And finally we need to ensure that we have identified a clear way forward on Crossrail, consistent with sensible handling of the Bill currently before Parliament.
As Secretary of State for Scotland you will represent the interests of Scotland in Cabinet particularly in those matters reserved to the Government by the Scotland Act. You will be responsible for the smooth running of Scotland's devolution settlement and act as Guardian of the Scotland act, especially in relation to orders (or subordinate legislation) made under its authority. In carrying out these responsibilities you should build on the effective working partnership which we have established with the Scottish Executive since devolution.
By the end of June I would welcome your preliminary assessment of key challenges for your Department, including the key milestones and risks in each area, and the main actions you propose to meet these challenges.
As a first step, I would be grateful if you come back to me by the end of May on how you have allocated responsibility for key transport issues and objectives among your Ministerial team. I am keen that we make the very best use of our excellent team in Government.
Your future plans will of course need to be set against the background of lower growth in funding than in recent years. This means the Zero Based and Efficiency Reviews currently underway, combined with Departmental Capability Reviews, will be a critical input and I would like you to give these your personal attention to ensure that the Department's spending is effective and fit for purpose as we move forward.
