Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of extending the emergency measures agreements on rail franchises.

The Emergency Measures Agreements provide franchise operators with a temporary suspension of their existing franchise agreement’s financial mechanisms for an initial period of 6 months, with options for further extension or earlier cancellation as agreed. Work is underway within government to determine the most effective approach once this 6 month period ends. This work will take account of the impact of COVID-19 on demand for passenger rail travel in both the short and long term, and the associated economic and financial impacts on the railway.