Our railways here in Devon need investment.

On Tuesday of this week, MPs debated bringing passenger railway services into public ownership.

I think I may share with many people who have written to me about this the following view: I don’t particularly care whether trains are run by the Government or by train operating companies; the main thing is that they run on time!

Late trains are great for business at some of the brilliant cafes, pubs and kitchens on our railway platforms (Axminster comes to mind).

Yet what travellers want above all is to get to their destination.

We have been seeing track upgrades near Honiton lately.

Network Rail has been replacing trains with buses between Axminster and Exeter St Davids for a couple of weeks now.

The trains will finally be running again this Saturday, 23rd November, which is a great relief to all of us for whom the phrase "rail replacement bus service" sends a shudder down the spine.

Of course, track maintenance has to take place.

Yet for those of us who rely on the train service to get to work, college, or a medical appointment, it’s inconvenient when we have to get on a coach, significantly increasing travel time during dark, wet mornings and evenings.

Some rail users in East Devon tell me that they are never quite sure if a train will turn up on time.

Often, the number of carriages is reduced, which means you can end up standing closer to your neighbour than you are comfortable with.

Good luck if you need the toilet on these journeys because it may be blocked by bodies wedged tightly together!

The railways here in the South West have been neglected for years.

The last Conservative government claimed in its dog days that it was cancelling HS2 in order that it might spend the money on other rail projects instead.

If that had been true, it would have been great.

Yet ministers had ploughed billions into HS2, which they later sensationally scrapped, wasting colossal sums of taxpayers’ money.

We could do with some of that money to create an additional loop in the Feniton area, which could improve punctuality on what is otherwise a single-track line.

I raised this with the Rail Minister last December.

I read of trains on the continent, which are clean, run on time, and on which you can be certain of getting a seat.

That description is a long way from the railway we have here.

I am monitoring Government actions following their pledge to improve the reliability of our railways—and I intend to hold them to it.