Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress she has made on securing workforce reform as part of pay talks with the rail industry.

Our railways are broken and need change, but we simply cannot do this until we reset our relationships with unions. The breakthroughs on pay will mark a new era of industrial relations, getting unions and TOCs back around the table, and changing the tone of discussions.

The Department has been clear that in return for a fair pay settlement, this reset in relationships will enable a more collaborative approach on tackling long-standing issues that undermine productivity and reliability on the railways. This includes agreement to work together to address industry-wide matters that will improve the operational resilience of the railway, e.g. development of a new industry driver training competency framework and creation of a new joint advisory committee on new rolling stock procurement relating to cab design.