Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether XC Trains Limited were in default of their contract regarding any of their contractual performance indicators in (1) October 2024 (2) November 2024 and (3) December 2024; and, if so, whether they were given relief from such defaults through an extended remedial agreement.

All operators are required to meet their contractual obligations as set out in their National Rail Contract, including contractual performance indicators. Failure to comply with those contractual obligations, once Force Majeure claims have been taken into account, leaves operators open to enforcement action.

The Department is currently assessing if XC Trains Limited exceeded the default threshold, for any of the relevant indicators in these periods, once Force Majeure claims have been taken into account.

The current Remedial Agreement with XC Trains Limited that was agreed in August 2024 runs until March 2025. There has been no amendment to the existing Remedial Agreement.