Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Statement by the Parliamentary Under-secretary of State for Transport on 8 November (HC WS239), if the benefits expected by passengers could be achieved without requiring costly and disruptive electrification works, why they initially authorised those electrification projects, and why they allowed the projects to proceed to such a late stage before deciding to defer them.

Electrification has been commissioned as part of the Government's plans to upgrade the rail network due to its benefits to passengers – such as facilitating the delivery of new and more reliable trains - benefits to the environment and its contribution to reducing the cost of the railway.

Programmes as large and complex as the Great Western Route Modernisation will always be subject to ongoing review and the recent announcements on deferring electrification on parts of the route were based on a consideration of the latest circumstances and assumptions in order to make sure we are delivering enhanced services for passengers, such as new trains, in a way that provides value for money for taxpayers.