https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/11/10/workers-fear-losing-jobs-over-train-delays-warn-mps/

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Workers fear losing their jobs because rail services are regularly late, MPs have warned.

A spate of line closures and cancellations during the summer heatwaves made it impossible for thousands of commuters to arrive at the office on time.

MPs at a Westminster Hall debate said workers were increasingly fearful of the lack of reliable train connections and urged the Government to spend more on rail infrastructure to improve punctuality.

Charlotte Cane, the Liberal Democrat MP for Ely and East Cambridgeshire, said: “One [constituent] in particular has written to say that because their train has been so unreliable for getting to their job in London that their employer is now putting them under pressure.

“They are becoming an unreliable member of staff and their employer doesn’t know when they are going to turn up to work.

“They are also having to make up the time at the end of the day, which means they are getting home very late. It makes it a complete nightmare for them.”

Desperate to protect their jobs, some workers were now considering moving house to be closer to stations with more reliable services, MPs said.

Others are considering giving up well-paid positions in London and other major cities for less lucrative roles closer to home.

Among the worst-hit lines this summer was the route between King’s Cross and King’s Lynn via Cambridge and Ely, the later of which lies in Ms Cane’s constituency.

It suffered three months of disruption, including 900 cancellations after normally damp peat beneath the tracks dried out, leading the ground to become uneven.

James Wild, the Conservative MP for North West Norfolk, which includes King’s Lynn, said people from the town who worked in Cambridge and London had found the disruption intolerable.

He told The Telegraph: “I’ve had quite a number of constituents who have said they’re thinking of moving jobs. They’ve been in tears and incredibly stressed.

“One lady said her husband, who commutes and is self-employed, had been driven to depression and was having
suicidal thoughts because he was worried that he wouldn’t be able to provide for his family. It’s pushing people to breaking point.”

Mr Wild said some commuters had opted to drive to Peterborough on the East Coast Main Line, or Norwich, which has trains to Liverpool Street – both an hour away by road – to be sure of getting to work.

He said there were concerns that with the line suffering heat-related disruption for the past two summers, people would stop viewing King’s Lynn as a viable commuter town, which could have a knock-on effect on house prices.

Mr Wild questioned Andy Burnham about the matter in September, when the Prime Minister said he would “convene a rail summit soon”.

Richard Foord, the Liberal Democrat MP for Honiton and Sidmouth, said commuters to cities beyond London had also been affected.

He said restrictions imposed between London Waterloo and the West Country had in one case led a dental hygienist to cancel her 9am appointments “indefinitely”.

Simon Lightwood, the minister for local transport, said he could not rule out further weather-related disruption.

He added that while speed restrictions and closures might be frustrating, the railway’s primary duty was to keep passengers safe.