Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the funding arrangements are for the (a) Department for Transport Operator Limited and (b) transfer of staff from Rail Service, Rail Strategy and Reform and Corporate Delivery.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Department for Transport Operator Limited (formerly DfT OLR Holding Limited) is the government’s public sector rail owning group and is currently funded by charging its train operating company subsidiaries for services provided but also by dividends when received. The Department for Transport will be able to confirm future funding arrangements for Department for Transport Operator Limited in due course.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will publish any impact assessment for the transfer of staff to the Department for Transport Operator Limited from Rail Service, Rail Strategy and Reform and Corporate Delivery.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The planned transfer of some staff from DfT to the DfT Operator will take place under Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) (TUPE) Regulations 2006. Formal consultation is expected to commence later in the autumn, and we will continue to communicate and share materials with staff and stakeholders as appropriate.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what her proposed timeline is for the transfer of staff to the Department for Transport Operator Limited from Rail Service, Rail Strategy and Reform and Corporate Delivery.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The proposed transfer of some staff from DfT to the DfT Operator is planned to take place for the beginning of the financial year 2026/27.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what emergency plans (a) her Department and (b) Network Rail has made for future extreme weather events.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department requires Train Operating Companies and Network Rail to put in place measures to avoid, where possible, the potential impact of disruption including as a result of weather.
Network Rail owns and is responsible for maintaining railway infrastructure to ensure passenger and freight services operate safely. Officials hold regular discussions with Network Rail and industry to ensure severe weather preparedness plans are in place with clear mitigations to reduce the impacts of weather on punctuality and reliability.
Network Rail Routes liaise closely with Train Operators to ensure comprehensive checklists are in place and to align customer messaging. Extreme Weather Action Telecons (EWATs) are stood up in anticipation of adverse or extreme weather conditions likely to impact upon rail networks, attended by Network Rail, British Transport Police, the Rail Delivery Group, train operators and the Department. EWATs coordinate the response to severe weather, for example by prepositioning people, equipment, assets to at-risk areas and implementing speed restrictions and emergency timetables where appropriate. Where services need to be cancelled, train operators will seek to provide alternative transport where possible, although there may be instances where this is not viable.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which railway routes are most at risk from (a) climate change and (b) extreme weather events.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Network Rail is undertaking a programme of adaptation pathways across the network to develop a long-term strategic adaptation plan and identify priority areas for further adaptation investment. This approach will help identify those parts of the network which may require transformational change to enable safe and reliable services to continue in the future.
Further, we recognise that the UK rail network is large and diverse, with different landscapes and communities facing different climate risks. Network Rail has produced a Weather Resilience and Climate Change Adaptation (WRCCA) plan for each of its five regions. This allows Network Rail to better identify, at a regional scale, those routes most at risk from climate change and extreme weather events. In 2026, 14 TOCs will also submit their first WRCCA strategies. As most TOCs operate over confined geographical regions, these will add further detail to our understanding of regional risks.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of (a) climate change and (b) extreme weather events on the railway network.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Network Rail is undertaking a programme of climate change adaptation pathways across the network to develop a long-term strategic adaptation plan and identify priority areas for further adaptation investment. This approach will help identify those parts of the network which may require transformational change to enable safe and reliable services to continue in the future. Network Rail has produced local level weather resilience and climate change adaptation plans. These explain Network Rail’s understanding of how weather and climate change can affect infrastructure at a more targeted, local level.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations she has made to the Chancellor of the Exchequer for additional funding to mitigate the impact of (a) climate change and (b) extreme weather events on the railway network.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
My department takes resilience of the railway very seriously. The recent Climate Change Committee progress report on adapting to climate change rated plans and policies of the rail sector as being 'good' – one of only three parts of the economy. DfT’s upcoming climate change adaptation strategy will address the recommendations from the progress report within our remit and empower the sector to take further action.
Network Rail is undertaking a programme of adaptation pathways across the network to develop a long-term strategic adaptation plan and identify priority areas for further adaptation investment. This approach will help identify those parts of the network which may require transformational change to enable safe and reliable services to continue in the future. Network Rail has produced local level weather resilience and climate change adaptation plans. These explain Network Rail’s understanding of how weather and climate change can affect infrastructure at a more targeted, local level.
For the current Control Period in England and Wales (CP7 - from 2024/25 to 2028/29) Network Rail will invest around £2.4 billion in activities that deliver primary weather resilience benefits. A large proportion of this is used for core maintenance and renewals activity.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues and (b) the Maritime and Coastguard Agency on the UK Civil Hydrography Programme.
Answered by Mike Kane
The Secretary of State has not had any discussions with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency or Cabinet colleagues regarding the UK Civil Hydrography Programme.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the framework agreement between her Department and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency was signed; and if she will publish this agreement.
Answered by Mike Kane
The MCA Framework agreement was published in November 2017.
The Department for Transport has recently updated the MCA framework document, which will be published shortly.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Report to the Shipbuilding Enterprise for Growth Group by the Centres of Excellence Task & Finish Group, published in September 2024, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on potential domestic maritime employment opportunities in the pipeline of shipbuilding contracts identified in that report.
Answered by Mike Kane
Shipbuilding skills and employment is led by the National Shipbuilding Office (NSO), which is hosted by the Ministry of Defence. My officials are in regular contact with the NSO to understand where the Department can support their work.