Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with Govia Thameslink on the safety of (a) train drivers and (b) railway staff during the covid-19 lockdown announced in January 2021.

Department for Transport officials liaise with Govia Thameslink Railway on a frequent and regular basis to understand the measures they are putting in place regarding the safety of their staff.

In line with the January COVID-19 lockdown announcement, and guidance from Public Health England, Govia Thameslink Railway has implemented COVID-secure arrangements at all work places across their network. Measures include:

• Additional mess room facilities to enable social distancing
• The application of a sanitising agent (Zoono virucide) within the cab and saloon areas of trains
• Regular testing for secure ‘bubbles’ is provided where training within a cab is required
• All Clinically Extremely Vulnerable (CEV) employees were immediately stood down from work
• Staff rosters have been amended to reduce the number of frontline workers at stations, in line with the reduction in passenger numbers