Mrs Anne McIntosh (Vale of York, Conservative)

I am grateful to have the opportunity to move on to part 3 of the Bill. I want to share with the Committee my first unfortunate experience of assistance from the British Transport police. I was travelling back from work in Brussels, and I had booked for the first time on the hovercraft, which was then a new vessel. The hovercraft could not travel because the sea was too rough, so I had to come on the overnight ferry. I ended up at Victoria station at 1 or 2 o'clock in the morning. The first train north from King's Cross station to my family home did not leave until 5 or 6 o'clock in the morning.

A cause of great distress to me was that I was done by a taxi tout. I was not familiar with London—I do not know whether I am much more familiar with it now—and I did not want to take public transport, although I doubt that I could have anyway. I was in a long queue for taxis at 2 o'clock in the morning to get to King's Cross when a gentleman offered to take me out of the queue into his private car. I did not realise that he was neither insured nor licensed, and I was even more disgusted to be ripped off, as I paid enough to travel much further in a proper taxi.

I presented myself to the British Transport police, who were immensely helpful. Rather alarmingly, they told me about other individuals with whom I should not have any dealings at King's Cross in the early hours of the morning.

I pay tribute the British Transport police and add to the remarks made by my hon. Friend the Member for Westmorland and Lonsdale on Second Reading. He commended the work of the British Transport police. He spoke about them in the highest possible terms, and said that

''it is important for the British Transport police to know that they have the full support of people throughout the country and on both sides of the House for their work. I hope that the Secretary of State's prioritisation of their work in the Bill will also be reflected in the negotiations that he and others hold with the Treasury on the provision of resources for that police service. Conservative Members continue to hold the view that our police, in general, need more backing and that certainly holds as true for the British Transport police as for any other organisation.''—[Official Report, 28 January 2003; Vol. 398, c. 780.]

I welcome clause 17 and the thinking that lies behind it, in particular the fact that the British Transport police authority will be placed on a statutory footing in much the same way as other British police forces.

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