Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the rate of return to the public purse was on the East Coast Main Line (a) in each year from November 2009 to February 2015 and (b) from March 2015 to date.

Since 2015 the East Coast Main Line Company Limited (trading as Virgin Trains East Coast) has on average, contributed 20% more per rail period to the tax payer than when the franchise services were operated by Directly Operated Railways between 2009 and 2015.