New Labour leader Keir Starmer has named Jim McMahon as shadow transport secretary.
Mr McMahon (pictured) follows in the footsteps of Andy McDonald, who was moved to shadow employment secretary.
The new shadow transport secretary is Labour and Co-operative MP for Oldham West and Royton and is the son of a truck driver, which should give him a headstart with the road haulage community.
He will also know the local road and bus sectors well, thanks to his strong background in local government, having become a councillor in 2003 and then elected leader of Oldham Council in 2011.
He served on the Greater Manchester Combined Authority with lead responsibility for transport before moving to Parliament to become and MP in 2015.
After becoming an MP, he was appointed shadow minister for local government and devolution in 2016.
In 2015 he was awarded an OBE for services to the community in Oldham. His appointment was welcomed by the Railway Industry Association (RIA), the voice of the UK rail supply community.
Welcoming his appointment Jim McMahon said: 'I’m delighted and humbled to join the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Secretary of State for Transport and thankful to Keir for the opportunity. This is an exciting time to serve our movement, I can’t wait to get started with Labour’s transport team and build upon the work of my predecessor Andy McDonald.”
'Transport is critical to our economy and society, for both to succeed we must plan well in advance. As much as the big-ticket schemes are important, we must not lose sight of the day to day concerns of millions; the quality of their local public transport services. I look forward to supporting important key infrastructure projects which place us well in the long term, but also to consider how every village, town and city is served too.
'I’ve loved my time as a Shadow Minister for Local Government, and I’d like to thank all those I worked with in the Shadow CLG team including my former bosses Andrew Gwynne and Teresa Pearce.'
Darren Caplan, chief executive of the RIA, said: 'Both through the Coronavirus outbreak and afterwards, we look forward to working closely with the new Shadow Transport Secretary, to ensure there is a strong rail supply sector that supports passengers, freight services and the UK plc, its economy and connectivity more widely, in the months and years ahead.
'I would also, on behalf of RIA and our members, like to offer sincere thanks to outgoing shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald, who was very supportive of, and accessible to, the rail supply sector and a strong advocate of providing a consistent, visible pipeline of work for the railway industry. We congratulate him on his new role.'
Elsewhere, Steve Reed has become shadow communities and local government secretary.
The full shadow cabinet can be found here.
Register now for full access
Register just once to get unrestricted, real-time coverage of the issues and challenges facing UK transport and highways engineers.
Full website content includes the latest news, exclusive commentary from leading industry figures and detailed topical analysis of the highways, transportation, environment and place-shaping sectors.
Use the link below to register your details for full, free access.
Already a registered? Login