News

About £20bn of the government's transport budget for 2014-19 has yet to be allocated. Speaking at the Freight Transport Association's annual dinner Transport Minister Jim Fitzpatrick said he expected to be inundated with ideas now this fact had been made public. He was responding to a speech by FTA president Andrew Haines, who called on the government to recognise the importance of freight movements by investing urgently  in the transport infrastructure.

Fitzpatrick claimed the role of the freight transport industry is not under-estimated by the government, saying: "There is no doubt about the vital role of the FTA plays in keeping UK plc on the move and without an efficient transport British economy cannot function effectively and our international effectiveness will suffer. This is why we have pledged record investment in the transport sector for years to come. From this long-term funding commitment £20bn is unallocated for 2014-19."

And replying to Haines' call for this investment to be made more quickly, Fitzpatrick said: "We are [investing]. Two weeks ago we announced £132m in funding to support strategic rail freight and £150m to extend the active traffic management scheme on the M42 to other motorways around Birmingham."

He added that the government is also trying to address the industry's concerns in the short term: "All these changes are part of the big programme and rethink  the way we develop transport in Britain. Transport policy does not need to be a choice between rich and dirty and poor and green - we can still aim to boost economic growth and tackle climate change at the same time."

The government plans to target public spending across the various modes of transport. Fitzpatrick said. "We want to make sure we listen and learn from people on the ground to make sure we understand the challenges they face before we start to formulate a solution. We have a firm commitment to engage more fully with [the transport sector]."