Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2025 to Question 24061 on Rolling Stock, whether the Rolling Stock Strategy will include branch lines.

The Government is committed to ending years of poor service and fragmentation on the railways, by creating a unified and simplified system through public ownership of train operations and by establishing Great British Railways (GBR).

The forthcoming Railways Bill will enable the biggest overhaul of the rail sector in a generation. It will create stronger leadership by establishing GBR as a new ‘directing mind’ for the industry, bringing together the management of the rail network and the delivery of passenger services into a single public body.

GBR will have the tools and operational independence it needs to plan and run the rail system effectively on a long-term basis, driving up performance and reliability.

The Government is working at pace to develop the framework for a rolling stock strategy which will include considerations around the timelines for new build, refurbishments, and potential cascades. Once established, GBR will take the strategy forward providing a long-term approach to future rolling stock needs across the entire network including branch lines.