Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department plans to take to improve (a) service quality and (b) fares for passengers once South Western Railway is under public control.

As operators transition to public ownership, improving rail service quality will remain a crucial priority for this government. The Department holds train operators to account for their performance by regularly measuring and monitoring core quality standards such as cleanliness, information and customer service, and setting challenging targets for delivery.

Whilst it is our ambition through public ownership to deliver a more affordable railway, any long-term changes or concessions made to rail fares policy require balancing against the potential impacts on passengers, taxpayers and the railway.