Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the capacity of the Operator of Last Resort to run Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern services in the event that is necessary when the Govia Thameslink Railway contract expires in March 2022.

I can confirm that, in line with my Department’s usual approach, officials in my Department have been working on contingency plans to transfer Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern services to the public sector operator in the event of it not being appropriate to enter into a replacement contract with the existing operator in accordance with the Section 26 policy statement (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/243471/9780108512322.pdf).

I am advised that in the event that it is not appropriate to enter into a replacement contract with the incumbent operator, my Department will be in a position to transfer these services to the public sector operator from 1 April 2022 without any break in the continuity of services.