Rail minister resigns after telling MPs quitting would not improve Southern services

By The Newsroom
Published 15th Jul 2016, 15:29 BST
Updated 8th Jun 2018, 01:44 BST
Rail minister Claire Perry during a Westminster Hall debate on the performance of Govia Thameslink Railway (photo from parliament.tv) SUS-160714-112551001Rail minister Claire Perry during a Westminster Hall debate on the performance of Govia Thameslink Railway (photo from parliament.tv) SUS-160714-112551001
Rail minister Claire Perry during a Westminster Hall debate on the performance of Govia Thameslink Railway (photo from parliament.tv) SUS-160714-112551001
Rail minister Claire Perry has reportedly resigned just days after telling Sussex MPs her '˜falling on her sword' would not solve the problems with Southern services.

Govia Thamesink Railway (GTR), which runs services across the county, has been locked in a bitter dispute with the RMT union over the future role of conductors for months, with staff shortages leading to constant delays and cancellations.

The Government has faced repeated calls to strip GTR of its franchise, and MPs from across Sussex labelled Southern services a ‘national disgrace’ during a debate in Parliament on Wednesday (July 13).

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During that debate Ms Perry said: “If I thought it would help by me falling on my sword, I would. I have thought about it repeatedly. I do not like failure. I do not fail at stuff in my life. This feels like a failure.”

Just hours later Theresa May succeeded David Cameron as Prime Minister, and she appointed Chris Grayling as the new transport secretary on Thursday, replacing Patrick McLoughlin, who becomes chairman of the Conservative Party.

A successor to Ms Perry has not yet been announced, who reportedly resigned on Thursday night.

On Wednesday Tim Loughton, East Worthing and Shoreham MP, argued that if problems were not sorted by the beginning of September, then GTR should lose its franchise by the end of 2016.

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