Transport Secretary Rt Hon Heidi Alexander MP to open the RIA Annual Conference 2025
The Railway Industry Association is pleased to announce an outstanding cast of speakers at this year’s Annual Conference, with the Secretary of State for Transport, the Rt Hon Heidi Alexander MP, as the headlining keynote.
The conference this year takes place over two days on 5-6 November, at the Leonardo Royal Hotel, London Tower Bridge, and will be focusing on the theme “Resetting the Railways for growth – harnessing the power of the supply sector”. With rail reform a key priority for the Government, the Transport Secretary is expected to set out her ambitions for rail over the coming years.
Other speakers include: the Chair of Shadow Great British Railways, Laura Shoaf CBE; the Commissioner for Transport for London, Andy Lord; Managing Director of ScotRail, Joanne Maguire; Freightliner CEO, Tim Shoveller; and Managing Director of Northern Trains, Tricia Williams. More speakers will be announced in the coming weeks.
RIA Chief Executive, Darren Caplan, said: “We are very pleased to welcome Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander as this year’s keynote speaker at the RIA Annual Conference 2025.
“Ms Alexander has long experience of leadership in rail, from her time as Deputy Mayor for Transport for London, and as a Member of Parliament dealing with transport issues. RIA, our members, and the wider industry generally, will want to hear details of the Secretary of State’s vision for rail, with the railway standing on the cusp of significant change.
“We are also very grateful to all the other fantastic speakers who have confirmed so far. As the event is open to all with an interest in UK rail, we really do encourage people to now book early, to secure a place at what is always a popular flagship Annual Conference & Dinner in the railway events calendar.”
- You can view the full agenda for the Conference here.
- The Conference will be accompanied by an Exhibition, where networking refreshments will be served throughout the day. You can view the exhibitors so far here. This exhibition will also include a series of ‘Exhibition Spotlights’, where participants deliver a five-minute pitch from their stand to a networking audience. This provides the perfect opportunity for rail suppliers to engage with other dynamic professionals in the sector, whilst showcasing the latest developments in operations, services, and technologies.
- You can register your attendance at the RIA Annual Conference here.