Written Statements

Tuesday 2nd June 2015 Written Statements

Tuesday 2 June 2015

Government's Shares in Lloyds Banking Group

Tuesday 2nd June 2015 Written Statements

[The Economic Secretary to the Treasury (Harriett Baldwin)]

Further to the statement provided to the House on 18 December, the Chancellor announced yesterday that the trading plan to sell part of the Government’s shares in Lloyds Banking Group will be extended and will now end no later than 31 December 2015.

Under the plan, a broker has been appointed to gradually sell shares in the market over a period of time, in an orderly and measured way and in accordance with pre-agreed parameters.

The extension of the plan is a further step in returning Lloyds to the private sector and getting taxpayers’ money back. A statement will be laid before Parliament with further details at the end of the plan.

As part of its plan to return Lloyds to the private sector, the Government plan to launch a share sale which will be open to retail investors in the next 12 months. Further details will be set out in due course.

[HCWS10]

Rail Franchising (East Anglia)

Tuesday 2nd June 2015 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Claire Perry)]

Today the Department for Transport has announced that the following companies have successfully pre-qualified to bid for the East Anglia franchise competition:

Abellio East Anglia Ltd¹

First East Anglia Ltd

National Express East Anglia Trains Ltd

In order to pass the pre-qualification evaluation each of the bidders had to demonstrate that they have the financial strength, legal, safety and operational experience to run this important franchise. This announcement marks another key milestone in the rail franchising programme and is the next step in delivering real change to the passengers in the East Anglia region.

The Department plans to deliver an invitation to tender to the short listed bidders in August 2015. The bidders will be required to submit plans by December 2015 to demonstrate how they will deliver transformation and growth to passengers across the East Anglia region. The successful franchisee will commence their operation of the franchise in October 2016.

¹Joint Venture: Abellio Transport Group Ltd 60% Stagecoach Transport Holdings Ltd 40%

[HCWS9]