Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Note 27 of her Department’s 2025/26 annual accounts, what estimate she has made of the level of public subsidy to rail services in each of the next five years.

The Department regularly forecasts the financial support required for passenger rail services as part of its financial planning.

The precise level of subsidy in future years will depend on a range of factors, including passenger demand, farebox revenue, the cost of operating services and the delivery of planned efficiencies. The Department’s current plans assume that financial support to passenger rail services will reduce over the Spending Review period, as ridership and revenue increase and efficiencies are delivered.

Budgets for individual financial years are confirmed through the Parliamentary Supply Estimates process. The Government has not set detailed budgets covering all five years requested, as this period extends beyond the current Spending Review settlement.