Southern Rail returned to public ownership
Parliament has now returned after the Whitsun recess.
Over the weekend, Southern Rail returned to public ownership.
Govia Thameslink (GTR), which operates Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern and the Gatwick Express, is responsible for 1 in 6 passenger rail journeys in Britain, carrying hundreds of millions of passengers each year.
Thanks to this Labour Government, GTR is now officially a part of Great British Rail, meaning passengers can expect more reliable rail services, effective staffing, and simplified fares and ticketing.
This is welcome news for us passengers in Adur and Worthing, as our community has had to endure a broken rail system for too long.
Also last week Alan Milburn published his interim findings on the increase in the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs), advocating for a fundamental system change to help young people into work, and is expected to publish his final recommendations for reform later in the year.
To address this issue, the Government is launching a major youth employment initiative, backed by £1 billion to help create 200,000 jobs, alongside the most significant transformation of apprenticeships in a decade.
We inherited a situation where nearly a million young people were not in employment, education or training, but we must ensure that all young people have access to the best opportunities.
In other news, the Government announced a new defence treaty with Poland, which will strengthen our shared security and capabilities.
Over the next few weeks, I look forward to attending local school fairs as we move into the summer!