Heidi Alexander appointed to head DfT

Swindon South MP Heidi Alexander has been appointed as secretary of state at the Department for Transport (DfT), following the resignation last week of predecessor Louise Haigh.

Ms Alexander, who has served in the government as justice minister since this year’s election, was originally an MP from 2010 to 2018, before resigning her seat to become deputy mayor of London for transport, a role she served in until 2021. She was re-elected to parliament in July.

The Road Haulage Association (RHA) has welcomed the appointment. Commenting, managing director Richard Smith said:  “On behalf of the RHA, I’d like to congratulate Heidi Alexander MP on her appointment as the new transport secretary. We look forward to working closely with her on the important issues facing our critical industry…

“We look forward to working collaboratively with the new transport secretary and her ministerial team on solutions to improve roads, infrastructure and driver facilities on the decarbonisation journey in the months and years ahead.”

Logistics UK said the incoming transport secretary must “seize the opportunity to drive Labour’s growth mission by prioritising logistics and acknowledging its foundational role in the economy”.

Chief executive David Wells OBE commented: “Congestion and delays, friction at our borders, and a lack of public investment over time is making UK logistics less efficient. The World Bank Logistics Productivity Index shows that the UK has slipped from 4th in the world to 19th in the last 10 years.

“Frustratingly, by appointing herself ‘Passenger in Chief’ Louise Haigh failed to recognise the role of commercial transport in delivering the government’s top growth mission, or how to leverage logistics and supply chains to achieve this. The vision for the Integrated National Transport Strategy [launched on 28 November] was not integrated as it did not include logistics, a major user and provider of our transport networks.

“The next secretary of state for transport has a huge opportunity to address the decline in logistics productivity, drive growth and secure the sector’s place in the forthcoming Industrial Strategy, including through a genuinely integrated transport strategy that meets the needs of the travelling public while facilitating the efficient movement of freight.

“Logistics UK has identified the key transport corridors and critical routes for investment and is pressing the Treasury and the DfT to better identify the UK’s strategic logistics network, and use this as the basis of a 30-year infrastructure strategy for freight to turbocharge growth across the whole economy.”