Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what safeguards will be included in the Great British Railways licence to manage conflicts of interest arising from Great British Railways’ dual role as system operator and rail retailer.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
To ensure fair and open competition when Great British Railways (GBR) has a dual role as a retailer and provider of wider retail industry management functions, the government has announced a robust package of safeguards. These are a Code of Practice, with the force of a GBR licence condition; separation of decision-making between GBR’s retailer and its cross-industry systems and services; and ORR monitoring and enforcement of GBR’s adherence with the Code of Practice.
The retail Code of Practice will incorporate clear requirements for how GBR should interact with all market participants. There will be full consultation on the Code of Practice, and further detail will be confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what her planned sequencing and timetable is for (a) publication of the draft Great British Railways licence for parliamentary scrutiny and formal consultation, (b) consultation led by the Office of Rail and Road on the Retail Code of Practice and (c) finalisation of those documents; and whether Parliament will be able to scrutinise the draft licence before the passage of the Railways Bill.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided to Question 88358 Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament Further information on the GBR licence can be found in the Railways Bill factsheet: holding Great British Railways to account
There will also be a full consultation on the retail code of practice, and further detail will be confirmed in due course. Further information on the code of practice can be found at Railways Bill factsheet: tickets and retail.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the principle of economic parity between Great British Railways’ retail operations and third-party retailers will be included in the Great British Railways Licence.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
To ensure fair and open competition when Great British Railways (GBR) has a dual role as a retailer and provider of wider retail industry management functions, the government has announced a robust package of safeguards. These are a Code of Practice, with the force of a GBR licence condition; separation of decision-making between GBR’s retailer and its cross-industry systems and services; and ORR monitoring and enforcement of GBR’s adherence with the Code of Practice.
The retail Code of Practice will incorporate clear requirements for how GBR should interact with all market participants. There will be full consultation on the Code of Practice, and further detail will be confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate she has made of the development, operating and upgrade costs of the proposed Great British Railways retail app and website; how she plans to assess value for money; and when final information on those costs will be published.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Officials continue to develop the proposition for the Great British Railways app and website. We are engaging with industry on this project and will provide updates in due course.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the oral evidence to the Transport Committee on Wednesday 7 January 2026 on the Railways Bill, how structural separation between retail functions and cross-industry management functions of Great British Railway will operate, including governance, accounting, decision-making and information-sharing arrangements; where this separation will be formally set out; and when she plans to publish further details.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
To ensure fair and open competition when Great British Railways (GBR) has a dual role as a retailer and provider of wider retail industry management functions, the government has announced a robust package of safeguards. These are a Code of Practice, with the force of a GBR licence condition; separation of decision-making between GBR’s retailer and its cross-industry systems and services; and ORR monitoring and enforcement of GBR’s adherence with the Code of Practice.
The retail Code of Practice will incorporate clear requirements for how GBR should interact with all market participants. There will be full consultation on the Code of Practice, and further detail will be confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the withdrawal of Class 43 HST trains from service in the South West does not affect scheduled services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department is committed to maintaining a reliable timetable in the South West as the High Speed Train (HST) fleet, including Class 43 power cars, is withdrawn. The remaining three units are being withdrawn at the end of the Summer 2025 timetable and there are plans in place to replace them with existing fleet including the Class 175s when they re-enter passenger services.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure that the necessary licences for marine autonomy sea trials to take place can be granted by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The MCA have engaged with Harbour Masters and the Defence Maritime Regulator to facilitate creation of maritime autonomy sea trial areas. MCA are also in discussions with the Government Legal Department to explore avenues for providing the necessary certification. Necessary guidance is also being drafted to communicate the requirements to all concerned, prior to any agreement.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when she plans to publish the draft statutory Code of Practice governing retail market conduct under Great British Railways; whether she plans to consult on that Code of Practice; and whether that Code will be in place ahead of the commencement of Great British Railways’ retail functions.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The future rail retail industry code of practice will set out clear requirements for how Great British Railways (GBR) interacts with all market participants. It will be owned and managed by the ORR, and GBR’s licence will require compliance with it. The Railways Bill enables the Secretary of State to introduce the licence condition that will underpin the code of practice and give it force.
The government has confirmed that there will be full consultation on the production of the code of practice. Further detail on that consultation will be set out in due course. The Code of Practice will come into force in alignment with GBR's beginning to retail and taking on responsibility for wider retail industry management functions.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what her estimate is of the a) initial set-up and b) ongoing costs associated with Great British Railways’ future retail capability via website and app.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The government has set out plans for GBR to retail online, bringing together the 14 rail operator websites and apps. This will reduce fragmentation, deliver savings through removing duplication, and provide a more coherent passenger offer.
The costs and savings associated with GBR's website and app will be continually assessed as this work progresses, with a view to delivering for passengers and taxpayers alike.
Asked by: Rebecca Smith (Conservative - South West Devon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the draft Sport or Pleasure Vessel Code on small businesses.
Answered by Mike Kane
The public consultation for the Vessels in Commercial Use for Sport or Pleasure Code of Practice and underpinning Statutory Instrument ran from the 4th December 2024 to the 25th February 2025.
A De-Minimis Assessment for the Code of Practice and Statutory Instrument was undertaken to fully consider the potential impacts of the proposed updates on the Sport or Pleasure Vessel sector. The De-Minimis Assessment included specific consideration of the likely impacts on small and micro businesses. The De-Minimis Assessment was published on gov.uk as part of the consultation package and remains publicly available.
As part of the consultation a number of specific questions were posed. This included a question asking whether respondents were aware of small or micro businesses who may be disproportionally affected by the draft measures set out in the Code of Practice or Statutory Instrument. The consultation provided an opportunity for any evidence on potential impacts to be submitted. All consultation responses are currently being reviewed.