Local Member of Parliament for Gillingham and Rainham Rehman Chishti MP has welcomed the announcement by the Prime Minister that train fares will be capped at RPI plus 1 percent for the next two years.
Rehman has campaigned on this issue locally and raised questions on train fares in the House of Commons.
In a recent debate on train fares, Rehman challenged the Shadow Transport Minister Marie Eagles MP over the previous Labour Government’s policy. She admitted that they were wrong to impose higher train fares on Medway, and the South East, than the rest of the country.
In 2007 the Labour Government decided to increase fares in the South East by RPI plus 3%, whilst the rest of the country had RPI plus 1%.
This resulted in train fares from Gillingham and Rainham increasing by more than 30%.
Rehman, along with other Kent MPs, will be meeting with the new Secretary of State for Transports, Patrick McLoughlin MP, to discuss commuters’ concerns.
The Member of Parliament for Gillingham and Rainham Rehman Chishti MP said:
"The Prime Minister’s announcement is good news for hard working commuters living in Gillingham and Rainham. Many residents have raised this issue with me and I have campaigned to make sure that people in my constituency are treated fairly. I am pleased that the Government is doing what it can to help families and households with the cost of living."