Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the proposed advisory role of the Office of Rail and Road under the Railways Bill in providing independent scrutiny of Great British Railways’ annual and five-year business plans; and whether she will introduce statutory requirements for the ORR to publish (a) efficiency assessments, (b) value-for-money analysis, and (c) compliance with the Long-Term Rail Strategy.

The Government considers the Office of Rail and Road’s (ORR) proposed advisory role under the Railways Bill provides effective independent scrutiny of Great British Railway’s (GBR) business plans. We would expect the ORR to assess efficiency, value for money, and compliance with strategic objectives and the ORR could publish this as part of its independent advisory function. There is no intention to put statutory constraints on the form or content of ORR advice.