Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department are taking to help recruit train operators from outside of the industry.

As outlined in the George Bradshaw address, we are committed to enhancing the role of the private sector as we build a more customer-focused and joined-up railway.

New Passenger Service Contracts will balance the right performance incentives with simple, commercially driven targets, but these contracts won’t follow a one-size fits all approach. We will seek to maximise the benefits of competition by attracting current and new market entrants to bid to deliver high-quality services for passengers. We will consult with the market to develop and design the new contracts in due course.