Jeremy Westlake to outline vision for network rail at RIA annual conference in London

Credit: Network Rail

The Railway Industry Association (RIA) has announced that Jeremy Westlake, incoming CEO of Network Rail, will speak at the RIA Annual Conference on 6 November at the Leonardo Royal Hotel, London Tower Bridge. He succeeds Sir Andrew Haines OBE, who retires in October. The event will welcome over 300 industry professionals across two days, 5-6 November.

This year’s theme is ‘Resetting the Railways for Growth: Harnessing the Power of the Supply Sector’. The conference will open with Transport Secretary Rt Hon Heidi Alexander MP delivering the first keynote on 5 November, followed by the Shadow Transport Secretary. Darren Caplan, RIA Chief Executive, said: “It’s great to have Jeremy Westlake, the new CEO of Network Rail from October, taking part in the RIA Annual Conference. Jeremy has a fantastic pedigree as Chief Financial Officer at Network Rail, and this will be one of the first chances the railway industry will have to hear from him as its leader, about his thoughts on Network Rail, rail reform and Great British Railways, and on engaging with the UK supply sector.”

Day one includes sessions from industry leaders including Marie Daley, COO of Transport for Wales, and Andy Mellors, MD of Avanti West Coast. Panel discussions will address the future of rail and the role of nations and regions. The day closes with a keynote from Mark Wild OBE, CEO of HS2, during the evening dinner.

On 6 November, highlights include a live podcast with Green Signals and keynotes from Laura Shoaf CBE, Chair of Shadow Great British Railways, and Tim Shoveller, CEO of Freightliner. The final sessions feature Steve White, MD of South Eastern Railway, Shamit Gaiger OBE, MD of West Coast Partnership, and Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson DBE, DL. Jeremy Westlake will join a fireside chat before Noel Travers, RIA Chair, delivers the closing remarks.