Ministers are not being told the truth about the extent of ticket office closures at railway stations, the Commons speaker said on Thursday.
Lindsay Hoyle made the intervention after rail minister Huw Merriman told MPs that train firms had promised that “no currently staffed station will become unstaffed as a result of these changes”.
The Speaker told the Minister that the ticket office at Chorley station, in his Lancashire constituency, was currently open all day. However, the proposed change was only to have “somebody available” on the station from 9am to 4pm.
He said: “Please take [this] up for people with disabilities, quite rightly. But don’t forget: what you are being told isn’t the case.”
Mr Merriman faced a series of questions during transport questions about the ticket office closure proposals, in particular the feared consequences for passengers needing assistance.
He was told that a number of people with disabilities had raised concerns with MPs. Baroness Tanni-Grey Thompson, the Paralympian, had also expressed concerns.
He said the aim was to “redeploy staff” from behind ticket office windows onto station platforms and concourses.
Mr Merriman said: “I passionately believe that the best help anyone can give on a railway station is when they have personal interaction. That is very difficult when somebody is behind a glass screen.”
Waterloo station marked its 175th anniversary today - but is it about to lose its ticket office? I asked rail minister @HuwMerriman pic.twitter.com/7Lld0vHXuo
— Ross Lydall (@RossLydall) July 11, 2023
Research by the Evening Standard found that about 150 ticket offices in the capital are at risk of being closed, including on routes run by Thameslink, Southeastern and South Western Railway.
Labour’s shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh said TV star Richard Osman had been among passengers expressing concern. “It’s little wonder, because this consultation is completely pointless.”
I think ticket offices at railway stations are one of those things that remind of what a society should actually be. Real jobs and real interactions , and community can sometimes be placed above shareholder dividends. It's a choice we can make. #SaveTicketOffices
— Richard Osman (@richardosman) July 11, 2023
The RMT union has been leading the fight against ticket office closures. General Secretary Mick Lynch is due to address a demonstration at King’s Cross station at 6pm on Thursday.
The public has spoken; they overwhelmingly want to #SaveTicketOffices
— RMT (@RMTunion) July 13, 2023
Join us tonight at six at Kings Cross Station and ensure your voice is heard pic.twitter.com/nWM2MRvwWd
Mr Merriman claimed the closures were “industry-led reforms” that were about “modernising the passenger experience”. He said that 90 per cent of train tickets were bought online or at a ticket machine.
But he refused to respond directly to a question from Labour MP Rupa Huq, who represents Ealing Central and Acton, when asked if he could guarantee there would be no staff redundancies.
Ms Huq asked if an equalities impact study had been carried out. She said: “I’m lucky Sadiq Khan is keeping all my TfL rail stations open. But rail workers risked their lives for us all. They weren’t doing box sets and Bridgerton during covid. Can you commit to saying there will be no redundancies?”
Mr Merriman said that TfL had already embarged on a programme to bring staff out from behind ticket office windows onto platforms. He said some ticket offices were selling “just one ticket an hour”.
He replied: “The Labour mayor of London seems to think that this is a good way to operate - to get more staff out to help passengers. That is exactly how London Underground continues to operate.”
