Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the safety and speed of evacuation from Virgin (a) Pendolino and (b) Voyager trains in the event of an emergency.

The procedures for evacuation in an emergency are a matter for train operating companies. As the relevant safety duty holders they are best placed to identify any risks or hazards arising from the services they offer with oversight from the Office of Rail and Road as the independent railway safety regulator.

The UK already has one of the safest railways in Europe and the conditions which might necessitate a train evacuation are extremely rare. However, we must not be complacent and are working with the industry to further improve safety performance.