Over the weekend Storm Ingrid caused further collapses in the sea wall at Dawlish, once again exposing how vulnerable the main rail line to Devon and Cornwall remains. With Storm Chandra hitting today, the risks are far from hypothetical.
This rail line is not a luxury - it is a necessity for hundreds of thousands of people, supporting jobs, businesses and daily life across Devon.
Yet serious questions remain about whether funding is in place for urgent, unplanned resilience work when extreme weather strikes. Whilst over £165 million was invested in protecting this stretch of coastline under the previous Conservative Government, this Labour Government seem to be sticking their heads in the sand.
Today I asked the Minister to guarantee contingency funding where it’s needed because communities and businesses cannot afford uncertainty when critical infrastructure fails.
