Railways Bill

Lord Mohammed of Tinsley Excerpts

2nd reading
Tuesday 7th July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Mohammed of Tinsley (LD)]

My Lords, before turning to the substance of the Bill, I wish to begin by paying tribute to those who lost their lives on 7/7 21 years ago. Our thoughts and prayers are still with those families that were affected—and similarly with those who lost their lives or were injured in the more recent train accident on the East Midlands Railway line near Bedford. It is a line that I regularly use to come here every week and go home. In particular I pay tribute to the emergency services and the railway staff who responded in a very professional manner. An incident such as the recent Bedford train crash is a solemn reminder that safety must always remain the first duty of our railway. I declare an interest in that my eldest son works for one of the railway companies in the north of England.

This Bill presents an opportunity to reshape Britain’s railways for a new generation. It is therefore right that we approach it not through the lens of ideology but through the experience of millions of passengers who rely on the railways every day. Much of the political debate surrounding this legislation will inevitably focus on the question of ownership and structure. Others will argue over the merits of nationalisation versus privatisation. From these Benches, we take a different view. We are not interested in fighting yesterday’s arguments. The real test is whether the railway delivers a service that is affordable, reliable, accessible and worthy of public confidence.

Passengers must be at the heart of Great British Railways. That is why we will seek to strengthen this Bill by ensuring that Great British Railways has not only a freight growth target but a statutory passenger growth target. This will be necessary if we are to hit our climate change targets as well as ensuring that people have choice in terms of how they get about. If freight deserves clear objectives, and it does, surely passengers deserve the same ambition.

Success should be measured not simply by trains running but by more people choosing rail because it is the most attractive option. That matters nowhere more than in the north of England. For far too long, passengers across Yorkshire—and particularly those travelling to and from Sheffield, where I am from—have endured unreliable services, overcrowding, ageing rolling stock and delays that have become too familiar. The pace of trains that many noble Lords might remember from decades ago is sometimes still a reality in the north. People are just amazed that these things are sometimes still ongoing.

Too often, journeys that should be straightforward become an exercise in frustration. Some of my colleagues on the Front Bench will probably be smiling at the moment, knowing that I have often missed Oral Questions because either the train has never left Sheffield station or, if it has left Sheffield station, it has on occasion stopped at Chesterfield, or Derby, or Leicester, where we have had to get off.

Often, those trains are also severely overcrowded. In the upbringing I had from both my parents, we were told simply, “If people need those seats, you need to get up”—and we had to sit on the floor. That is the experience that some of us have had. Members of the public will be shocked to learn that that is the reality. It does not matter what class of ticket you buy. Sometimes it has been first class and you have still not had a seat. So there is clearly work to be done here.

We might compare that with the rail systems of many our European neighbours. These are punctual, frequent, integrated and regarded not as a luxury but as a basic expectation. Even within our own country, passengers in London—I am mindful now of my colleague and noble friend Lady Pidgeon—benefit from far greater frequency, investment and connectivity, at levels that many communities in Yorkshire can only dream of. A truly national railway must not entrench those inequalities; it must help eliminate them. If we are serious about encouraging people out of their cars and on to trains, we must also address the passenger experience.

We believe that this Bill should include a comprehensive passenger charter setting out clear and enforceable rights for those who use our railways. Passengers deserve certainty about standards of service, compensation, accessibility and information when things go wrong. Affordability is equally important. Britain’s fares system has become bewilderingly complex. Too many passengers still find themselves asking whether they have bought the right ticket or whether a cheaper option existed. Simplicity builds confidence.

We will therefore advocate for greater innovation in ticketing, giving passengers clearer and more flexible choice alongside the introduction of a national “rail miles” scheme that rewards loyalty and encourages more people to choose rail for both work and leisure.

Innovation, however, must not be confined to Great British Railways itself. I welcome the Bill’s recognition that independent ticket retailers should continue to operate in a fair and open market. That commitment must now be translated into reality. Independent retailers have driven innovation that has benefited passengers through better journey planning, smarter ticketing and increased competition.

Organisations representing ticket retailers, transport technology companies and online travel businesses have all argued that Great British Railways must adopt an open-by-default approach to data and ensuring genuine competition across ticket retailing. That means a genuinely level playing field. GBR should not be the regulator, the operator and the competitor simultaneously.

Independent retailers must enjoy fair access to data, transparent commercial arrangements and equal opportunities to innovate. The Office of Rail and Road’s code of practice must provide meaningful safeguards to ensure that passengers continue to benefit from choice, innovation and value for money, rather than drifting towards a state monopoly in ticket retailing.

There are, however, wider concerns about this Bill. We are troubled by the concentration of power in the hands of the Secretary of State. There is a real danger that Ministers become judge, jury and executioner of significant parts of the railway system. Operational decisions should not be subject to day-to-day political intervention. Railways require long-term planning, professional expertise and operational independence. We will therefore scrutinise carefully the responsibilities of Great British Railways, the Office of Rail and Road and the Passenger Council, to ensure that there is clarity rather than duplication.

Likewise, we remain concerned about the extensive reliance on secondary legislation throughout the Bill. Parliament should not be asked to sign a blank cheque on matters of considerable significance that deserve full parliamentary scrutiny, through primary legislation wherever possible.

This Bill has the potential to lay the foundations for a railway fit for the 21st century, but that will happen only if passengers—not institutions, not ideology and not Whitehall—remain at its centre. If we can create a railway that is reliable, affordable, innovative, accountable and genuinely passenger-focused, Great British Railways can become not simply a new organisation but a catalyst for restoring confidence in one of our nation’s greatest public services. I look forward to working constructively across the House to ensure that this legislation fulfils that ambition.