LAST week I spoke in a debate about regional transport inequalities. So apt for Cornwall with just one rail line, one road bridge and one other main arterial road in and out

Since I was elected last July, I have become closely acquainted with the London Paddington to Penzance line, commuting up and down weekly to Westminster to work. The Valentine’s storm in 2014 cut us off for eight weeks; we could not get in or out of Cornwall by rail. Since then, a lot has been done to improve the resilience of the line, but phase 5 of the improvements will be vital for strengthening the vulnerable coastal section and maintaining connectivity for Cornwall.

Cornwall sees a huge population increase in the summer, with about four-million visitors, but we lack reliable year-round connections, which constrains our economy and stops it growing. It also isolates the people who live here. Many of our young people must travel for over an hour on public transport to further education providers, and travelling between their apprenticeships and colleges is often impossible. That has been made even harder by recent cuts to the Truro College buses. The students in some villages appear to have been completely abandoned and it isn’t too dramatic to say that it’s impacting on their future prospects. The same applies to university students. Buses used to cost £1 each way as they were subsidised by university parking fees. That appears to have quietly stopped post-Covid and students are now left struggling to afford to get to and from university.

As a result of our 2015 devolution deal, Cornwall Council obtained greater transport powers. We already have the power to franchise and have entered into partnership agreements with bus providers. That’s led to an increase in bus patronage. Cornwall was the first rural area in England to introduce smart ticketing, but trying to run a bus network on a peninsula comes at a cost: the council subsidises 50 per cent of the public transport network.

Under the previous Conservative government, the south-west had the second lowest expenditure on public transport in the country, at just £429 per head. This government intends to focus on long-term investment in transport infrastructure, including a fourfold increase in local transport grants. The £1.6-billion national funding for potholes will be hugely important in Cornwall too, which has more than 4,600 miles of rural roads.

Investment in transport is crucial for Cornwall’s economy. Cornwall’s Chamber of Commerce said that transport connectivity is the top priority for the businesses it represents. Our poor transport links really hold us back. Much of the EU Objective 1/Structural Funding was ploughed into transport because we did not have the funding from elsewhere. We have rail branch lines that would not exist had it not been for that money, but that funding has dried up now.

Electrifying the main line would help. I also have a campaign to restore the freight rail line at the end of the Falmouth branch. Just 150 yards would open up so much for new and more established industries such as critical minerals and aggregates and could take 77 lorries off the road for each train.

We also have an airport that is still publicly owned and needs decarbonising and we need a new public service obligation settlement so that it can continue to supply vital links to London and abroad

Investment in transport infrastructure in Cornwall is essential for our economic growth and success in the future. I will be pushing for more throughout this Parliament.