Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many staff from (1) the Department for Transport, (2) Network Rail, (3) the Rail Delivery Group, and (4) the Office of Rail and Road, are expected to transfer to Great British Railways.

The government will work closely with industry to develop detailed plans for implementation.

We recognise the significant amount of work which happens across the industry to facilitate the running of the railways and the expertise required to achieve this. Retaining that expertise will be crucial to ensuring the futures success of the railways.

This is the biggest change to the railways in three decades and transformation on this scale will not happen overnight. Government is setting up a Rail Transformation Programme within the Department for Transport and working with the rail sector to ensure a common understanding of our vision for the railway, working collectively with the sector to design how this major project will be delivered. The Government will make an announcement on next steps in relation to implementation in due course.