The campaign to get Eurostar services resumed from Ashford International, after Polly joined a group of Labour MPs from across the south east who met with the Rail Minister, Lord Hendy to discuss what steps the Government would take to bring the service back.

Lord Hendy said the Government is supportive of the efforts to reinstate European services and confirmed the Department for Transport would work with potential operators to overcome issues around access to the lines.

Eurostar axed its services during the pandemic in 2020, and despite calls from MPs, the company is yet to return services or commit to a timeline. A service does still run to and from London St Pancras.

However, train companies Virgin and Evolyn are both reportedly interested in becoming competitors to Eurostar, and Polly and other Labour MPs are committed to continuing discussions to get services up and running again from both Ashford International and Ebbsfleet International. The MPs also recently met with the Chief Executive of Eurostar to push for action.

Polly said:

“The Government confirming  support for reopening European services at Ashford and Ebbsfleet is extremely welcome. My constituents should not have to travel into London, to catch a train that brings them back into Kent, and costs them far more in the process.

“While there is still a lot of work to do to get the trains running again, this is huge boost to our campaign, and I look forward to future discussion on how to get these vital services running again.”