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Britain’s Railways
20 May 2021
Lead MP
Grant Shapps
Debate Type
Ministerial Statement
Tags
EconomyTaxationTransportStandards & EthicsChildren & FamiliesLocal Government
Other Contributors: 38
At a Glance
Grant Shapps raised concerns about britain’s railways in the House of Commons. A government minister responded. Other MPs also contributed.
How the Debate Unfolded
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said:
Government Statement
EconomyTaxationTransportStandards & EthicsChildren & FamiliesLocal Government
Government Statement
The Minister announced significant reforms for the UK railway system, including the creation of Great British Railways to unify infrastructure and operations under a single public body. This move aims to improve accountability, customer experience, simplify ticketing, and promote private sector innovation while maintaining rail’s role in economic growth and levelling up regions. The statement highlighted past achievements and current challenges such as delays and fragmented industry management, emphasising the need for a radical overhaul. Key points include modernizing infrastructure with billions of pounds investment, improving passenger services through technology adoption, integrating different transport modes, and fostering clearer leadership to enhance decision-making transparency.
Jim McMahon
Lab
Oldham West
Question
Why did the Secretary of State delay announcing the rail reforms until now? What are the implications of reducing funding by up to 20% on job losses and regional impacts, especially after the £1 billion cut to Network Rail?
Minister reply
The Minister acknowledged the importance of addressing concerns about funding cuts but did not provide specific numbers for potential job losses or regional impacts. He emphasised that the reforms aim to streamline operations and improve efficiency rather than being driven by cost-cutting.
Jim McMahon
Lab
Oldham West
Question
How will the governance structure under Great British Railways affect rail freight, particularly in terms of track access and decarbonisation targets? What measures are in place to ensure that flexible ticketing schemes actually benefit passengers?
Minister reply
The Minister stated that the new structure will consider the needs of freight operators while supporting decarbonisation efforts. On flexible ticketing, he committed to rolling out convenient payment methods like smartphones and contactless, protecting existing ticket types, and introducing flexible season tickets next month.
Jim McMahon
Lab
Oldham West
Question
What steps will be taken to improve integration between different modes of transport and what devolved powers are planned for metro mayors in this context? When can we expect more details on profit margins for private operators?
Minister reply
The Minister highlighted the importance of better integrating rail with other transport modes but did not commit to specific devolved powers for metro mayors. He promised to provide more information on operator profits and fares in due course.
Jim McMahon
Lab Co-op
Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton
Question
May I start by thanking the Secretary of State for Transport for an advance copy of the statement, together with the report that was issued earlier this morning? It is two and a half years since the Williams review was first commissioned, and the very fact that Williams was commissioned at all shows that the state, the travelling public and those excluded from the railways because of accessibility have been given a poor deal. While much has changed through the network due to covid, what the Secretary of State has announced today was pretty much what was recorded in The Daily Telegraph last November.
Minister reply
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. I have to say that I sympathise, because I appreciate that it must have been difficult to take in a report of 114 pages in the time available. Skimming through it and coming up with questions will have been difficult, and I therefore understand why he asked some questions that are answered fully in the White Paper itself.
Jim McMahon
Lab Co-op
Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton
Question
Taking the announcements in turn today, the Secretary of State said that control of the infrastructure and the contracting of train operations will be given to this new arm’s length Government-owned body, with private firms bidding for concessions with an agreed profit margin built in. Can the Secretary of State confirm whether a publicly owned provider will be able to bid for these concessions on a level playing field? Will he also confirm whether the operator of last resort will continue to exist? If so, will it be brought fully back in-house?
Minister reply
The hon. Gentleman asked about the operator of last resort and whether it will still exist. The answer is in the report: yes, very much so. As he knows, I already effectively run Northern and the east coast mainline through the operator of last resort.
Jim McMahon
Lab Co-op
Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton
Question
It has been reported that the Treasury is demanding cost cuts of between 10% and 20%. There is concern that rather than seeing increased investment, the real driver behind bringing all this together is more about disguising painful cuts. Any talk of cuts in funding, such as the £1 billion funding cut to Network Rail that we have already seen, will have a direct impact on jobs, our regions and vital maintenance and upgrade works.
Minister reply
None the less, we have ongoing one of the biggest ever rail transformation programmes, if not the biggest.
Jim McMahon
Lab Co-op
Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton
Question
The head of Network Rail, Andrew Haines, and its chairman, Sir Peter Hendy, are to be tasked with drawing up the processes and structures of the new Great British Railways. What date have they been given to report back?
Minister reply
The timescales for change are all in the White Paper, and the good news is that we will get going on this immediately.
Jim McMahon
Lab Co-op
Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton
Question
On freight, can the Secretary of State say a little more about how the reforms will impact on the track access regime and about the governance arrangements that will exist for freight when Network Rail takes control of the passenger railways and freight together, albeit under a different name? Decarbonising transport will require a much greater shift if we are to move more from road to rail. How will the reforms help rail freight grow as part of decarbonising freight transport?
Minister reply
I refer him to page 78 of the White Paper, which talks about freight and our desire to make sure that those freight paths are available within our railway.
Jim McMahon
Lab Co-op
Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton
Question
The hon. Gentleman asked about the joined-up nature of transport, with people, as he says, waiting in the cold sometimes for transport that may or may not turn up.
Minister reply
He asks about the way this will work with devolution. He will be pleased to hear that I spoke to his friend the Mayor of Manchester only yesterday.
Question
I welcome the statement, the White Paper and indeed the birth of Great British Railways. We look forward to the Secretary of State giving more detail to the Select Committee on Transport this Wednesday with Keith Williams. In the meantime, let me ask about page 56 of the White Paper, which deals with passenger service contracts, promising: “Revenue incentives and risk sharing”. How will that work to ensure that the private sector continues to invest in a way that it has done over the past 20 or so years, when it doubled passenger numbers? Page 71 talks of “New flexible season tickets” allowing eight days’ travel in a 28-day period. Does that equate to 28% of the cost that passengers would expect to pay and therefore make it an incentive to travel in our new world?
Minister reply
I am grateful to the Chair of the Select Committee and I look forward to coming before the Committee on Wednesday.
Gavin Newlands
SNP
Paisley and Renfrewshire North
Question
I, too, thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of the statement. I have to report that, yet again, although there was consultation during the initial review, there has been no discussion of the actual plan with the Scottish Government... (full question provided)
Minister reply
I wish to correct a couple of things that the hon. Gentleman said. There has been extensive discussion with the Scottish Government at official level about all of this, so they have been very much briefed... (full answer provided)
Jonathan Gullis
Con
Stoke-on-Trent North
Question
May I start by welcoming my right hon. Friend’s statement today? The people of Stoke-on-Trent North, Kidsgrove and Talke elected me on a pledge to better connect places such as Milton via the Stoke to Leek line... (full question provided)
Minister reply
I can most certainly provide an absolute assurance to my hon. Friend, who, I have to say, has been an incredibly doughty fighter on behalf of his Stoke constituency... (full answer provided)
Sarah Owen
Lab
Luton North
Question
Passengers in Luton North will be concerned by reports that the Chancellor is planning to cut our railways. After 15 years of Access For All funding, it is truly shocking how many stations... (full question provided)
Minister reply
I do agree, but we have a fundamental issue here: our railways were built by the Victorians, who did not have any kind of disability discrimination legislation at the time. Many of the stations are far less accessible than we would want to see... (full answer provided)
Nigel Mills
Con
South Northamptonshire
Question
I welcome any reform that puts passenger interests at the heart of the railway, but may I say to the Secretary of State that what passengers in Alfreton and Langley Mill want is for their direct link to London each day... (full question provided)
Minister reply
My hon. Friend illustrates the problem with the setup that we have at the moment, where each individual railway company bids for its own bit of the track—its own path. We are not using the railway as efficiently as we should... (full answer provided)
Sarah Olney
Lib Dem
Richmond Park
Question
I welcome the review and the statement from the Secretary of State. My constituents will particularly welcome the news about flexible season tickets, which will be of huge benefit to commuters right across London... (full question provided)
Minister reply
I most certainly welcome the hon. Lady’s welcome for the White Paper. It is great to hear that she thinks that flexi-tickets will help her constituents; I think that they will, as work patterns evolve post covid... (full answer provided)
Greg Smith
Con
Mid Buckinghamshire
Question
I welcome the commitment to making our railways more passenger-focused and, indeed, resisting Opposition Members’ calls to go back to the bad old days of nationalisation. My right hon. Friend will know... (full question provided)
Minister reply
I do not think we could ever accuse my hon. Friend of not putting on the record his concerns about a new railway line, HS2, being built through his constituency. He has been a clear champion for his constituents in that regard... (full answer provided)
Rachel Hopkins
Lab
Luton South and South Bedfordshire
Question
Full public ownership of the railways is very popular with the public, so it is disappointing to see the half measures announced today that seem to nationalise risk but privatise profits. Will Ministers allow a publicly owned company to bid for these concessionary contracts?
Minister reply
As I have tried many times to stress to Opposition Members, we are not ideological about this; we just want to do what works for passengers, because they are the people who matter in all this. We want community groups to be able to be involved and the operator of last resort will still be a factor.
Question
The Fat Controller could not manage it, and choo-choo Portillo cannot document it. Can the Secretary of State harness Great British Railways to make it the legend that brings a direct line train from London to Bolton?
Minister reply
As I said, the strange thing about the May 2018 timetable change is that no one was in charge and we know what happened. The great thing about Great British Railways looking after all these different elements is that it will be able to use the track more intelligently.
Martin Vickers
Con
Brigg and Immingham
Question
Unlike Labour Members, I welcome the Secretary of State’s focus on what works rather than just on ownership. Can my right hon. Friend assure me that these services will continue? Paragraph 25 of the White Paper states: ‘New open access services will also be explored where spare capacity exists.’ Can we be assured that the default position will be to do everything possible to ensure that we do not reduce existing services and that we extend and improve services?
Minister reply
Yes, absolutely—open access is something we really think is an important part of the structure. It provides the competition. It keeps everybody on their toes.
Yvette Cooper
Lab
Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley
Question
The current system has been failing my constituency for far too long. Will the Transport Secretary now guarantee that this new plan will mean more local trains for the five towns?
Minister reply
I completely agree with her about the necessity to join up northern towns. The service at the moment is just not good enough. That is why this Government are obsessed—obsessed, I say—with levelling up.
Question
Many commuters face really significant changes in their working week. Will he go on looking at affordability for long-distance commuters on the Wessex route through Basingstoke?
Minister reply
Yes, we are charging Great British Railways with looking at the way that all ticketing operates. One of the things that is so crazy at the moment is the extent to which we are still walking around with paper tickets, which are about half of all tickets sold.
Andrew Gwynne
Ind
Gorton and Denton
Question
I welcome much in this statement, but it is meaningless if we cannot get more than one train a week through Reddish South and Denton stations. Greater Manchester has ambitious plans for both GM Rail and tram-train integration with the bus and Metrolink networks. How do we make Greater Manchester’s vision a reality?
Minister reply
I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s tacit support for this; he is right about what we want to do and where we want to go with it. Since that 2019 speech we have all been tackling covid, and I think it is fair to say that GM Rail would not necessarily be immediately in a position where it would want to take over these routes.
Question
Integrated public transport will be crucial to the north’s post-covid recovery. How will my right hon. Friend ensure that existing transport proposals for Greater Manchester and the north are consolidated into this ambitious plan for our railways?
Minister reply
That is an excellent question. When she reads out the list of different organisations involved, each of which has its own plans and ambitions, hon. Members can quickly understand why we need this national body bringing everybody together.
Newcastle upon Tyne North
Question
Whatever the future model of the rail industry, the east coast main line will be key to enabling major projects such as HS2, Northern Powerhouse Rail, Midlands Engine and East West Rail. When will the long-awaited integrated rail plan for the north and midlands be published? Will he give a commitment to properly fund this key piece of national infrastructure?
Minister reply
We have actually been putting in massive investment, which she may not have seen. For example, I have signed off at least £300 million—I forget the exact figure off the top of my head—to upgrade digital signalling, which will make a big difference to both the reliability and the number of trains that can travel up the line.
Richard Drax
Con
South Dorset
Question
Faster trains to London from Weymouth in his constituency will be a key infrastructure improvement. He asks if restoring a short stretch of track to the south-east of Yeovil Junction would improve connectivity, and enquires whether this is on the minister's radar.
Minister reply
The Rail Minister is aware of this proposal and it is part of their priorities. The government supports railway reconnections for better connections and opportunities.
Hilary Benn
Lab
Leeds South
Question
Following the timetable chaos, the fragmentation and three franchise failures on the east coast main line, he welcomes the Secretary of State's acknowledgment that privatisation does not work. He questions what benefits today’s announcement will bring for HS2 phase 2b to Leeds, future investment in Leeds station, and getting on with Northern Powerhouse Rail.
Minister reply
The integrated rail plan will address these issues including investments in the east coast main line and HS2 phase 2b to Leeds. He also emphasises that Transport for the North's core funding has not been cut but rather is waiting to be spent.
Paul Maynard
Con
Blackpool North
Question
Welcoming this long-awaited plan, he asks how the plan will embed the role of the existing rail ombudsman as a champion for passenger interests and ensure that all decisions made by the rail ombudsman are binding on rail companies obtaining concessions.
Minister reply
The White Paper includes provisions to strengthen the role of the passenger champion, as proposed by Paul Maynard during his time as Rail Minister.
Arfon
Question
Welsh rail services often do not work well due to low investment in Wales. He questions whether the White Paper offers new solutions and asks if the Secretary of State will ensure that the Welsh Government gets full control of rail in Wales.
Minister reply
The railways have received significant funding including £12 billion spent on Welsh services. While infrastructure is currently run by Network Rail, Great British Railways will oversee the whole of Great Britain.
Greg Clark
Con
Tunbridge Wells
Question
Welcoming flexible ticketing reforms, he suggests that contactless travel should be available beyond London, as it has been for 20 years in the capital.
Minister reply
Great British Railways will enable more contactless travel, addressing current complexities and resistance within the fragmented system.
Kim Johnson
Lab
Liverpool Riverside
Question
The Labour party advocates for public ownership of the rail network to provide better value. He inquires if this reform could lead to job losses or attacks on workers' terms.
Minister reply
Rather than focusing on public vs private ownership, the government aims to improve passenger satisfaction and maintain focus on service quality.
Andrew Jones
Con
Harrogate
Question
Acknowledging increased passenger numbers and service levels over 25 years, he asks how the new structure will maintain a customer-focused approach.
Minister reply
The White Paper focuses on improving comfort, punctuality, accessibility, and availability of contactless tickets to ensure continued customer satisfaction.
Barbara Keeley
Lab
Worsley and Eccles South
Question
Some 50% of rail stations in Greater Manchester are inaccessible to people with a disability, which is unacceptable. Can the Transport Secretary confirm that he will give our regional mayor, Andy Burnham, the funding and powers needed to control and improve stations?
Minister reply
The Minister agrees about the inappropriateness of 50% of rail stations being inaccessible but acknowledges that solutions cannot be implemented overnight. He highlights ongoing work by the Department for Transport to make more stations accessible every month.
John Redwood
Con
Wokingham
Question
Welcomes the use of private sector capital and management in improving rail services, including late trains, hard seats, and dirty carriages. Will Great British Railways ensure it is open to bids for new routes, improved timetables, property developments on railway land, and better service quality?
Minister reply
Yes.
Kirsty Blackman
SNP
Aberdeen North
Question
Given that 60% of people in Scotland want total control of the railways to be devolved to the Scottish Parliament, can the Secretary of State explain why he did not consider this in the White Paper?
Minister reply
The reason for Network Rail's operation is its ability to run a connected service across the entire country. Splitting it would go against the purpose of reforming Great British Railways. The Union connectivity review aims to make London to Edinburgh journeys faster, inviting Scottish involvement.
Peter Aldous
Con
Waveney
Question
Welcomes the Secretary of State’s statement and asks for an assurance that a through service from Lowestoft to Liverpool Street will be brought in as quickly as possible.
Minister reply
The Minister acknowledges his constituents' need for better service and indicates willingness to further discuss the matter with Peter Aldous.
Derek Twigg
Lab
Widnes and Halewood
Question
Welcomes electrification of the Liverpool-to-Manchester railway line through Widnes, Hough Green stations. Asks for support in creating a new station at Runcorn.
Minister reply
The Minister thanks Derek Twigg for his welcome of the policy paper and confirms that his effective representations will be heard regarding future railway works.
Chris Loder
Con
West Dorset
Question
Supports earlier comments about Yeovil south-east chord. Points out issues with current system, such as non-functioning lights at a station and poor frequency on the Heart of Wessex line.
Minister reply
The Minister acknowledges the importance of ending franchise boundaries that cause disruption and fragmentation. He assures Chris Loder that Great British Railways will be more responsive to MPs' needs.
Shadow Comment
Jim McMahon
Shadow Comment
The Shadow Minister welcomed the statement but criticised its delayed announcement and questioned the genuine intent behind it. He raised concerns about potential funding cuts impacting rail workers, maintenance, and regional development, requesting specifics on job losses and cost reductions. The shadow also sought clarity on freight governance under the new structure and decarbonisation targets for rail transport. Criticisms included the lack of detail on flexible ticketing schemes and doubts over joined-up public transport strategies, urging greater devolution powers to metro mayors. Overall, he felt that while the reforms increase public control, they do not go far enough in addressing systemic issues or shifting towards fuller public ownership.
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