Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the statement in the letter dated 2 November 2021 from the Minister of State for Transport to the Transport Select Committee that the outputs of the investigations into the failure of London & South Eastern Railway Limited to declare over £25 million of taxpayer's money will be a relevant factor in respect of decisions on the Thameslink, Southern & Great Northern contract due to expire on 1 April 2022, whether the LSER investigations will report before 1 April 2022; by what date he requires the outcomes of those investigations for them to be included as a relevant factor in respect of his decision on the TSGN contract; if he will make it his policy to bring the operation of the Thameslink, Southern & Great Northern franchise into public hands; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Wendy Morton
The Independent Committee, formed by the Chairs of London and Southeastern Railway’s joint-owning groups, Go-Ahead and Keolis, has now provided the Department with its final report. The Department is carefully considering the contents of the final report and next steps are being worked through as a priority with key decisions expected to be confirmed shortly. The Department continues to progress discussions with Govia Thameslink Railway on a new National Rail Contract to operate Thameslink, Southern & Great Northern franchise, but the outputs of the final report will help determine if it is appropriate to enter into this contract.
Asked by: Claire Coutinho (Conservative - East Surrey)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure that rail services between East Surrey constituency and London are restored to pre-covid-19 outbreak levels as soon as possible.
Answered by Wendy Morton
The Department continues to work closely with Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) as they adjust its timetable to meet the demand for travel and to mitigate the impact of staff absences on rail services.
Direct Southern weekday services between Uckfield and London Bridge, and East Grinstead and London Victoria will recommence from 21 February.
Currently, GTR are running services between Uckfield and East Croydon, with connections available from East Croydon for onward travel to London Bridge and from Monday 10 January, connections were provided to London Victoria. East Grinstead services are currently being redirected to London Bridge.
GTR’s new timetable will be delivered towards the end of February, providing more services in your constituency. These plans are currently being finalised and an update will be sent to stakeholders such as yourself by 11 February.
Department officials continue to work closely with GTR to ensure a reliable and punctual service is delivered as passengers return to the network. GTR has informed the Department that the provision of services will remain under active review, adjusting to changes in passenger demand as we move out of the pandemic.
Asked by: Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with local authorities in West London and neighbouring Heathrow airport on Southern rail access to Heathrow.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Government remains committed to the Southern Access to Heathrow scheme and is working towards the next step of market testing, which is dependent on the scheme being affordable to taxpayers. Ministers and officials have frequent discussions with local authorities and Heathrow Airport on a range of topics
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Government’s decision to end SouthEastern Railway’s franchise, what assessment his Department has made of the future viability of the (a) Thameslink, (b) Southern and (c) Great Northern franchises.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
At this stage I have no reason to believe this activity is part of a wider-industry practice. My officials will be examining the outcome of the on-going investigation and will consider what further steps may be appropriate. The outcome of the investigation will also be a relevant factor in respect of decisions regarding the future of the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise. The Operator of Last Resort is always available if required in accordance with our statutory obligations.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total level of expenditure on Emergency Recovering Measures Agreements for train operating companies is since October 2020.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Train operators provide management accounts to government, and are paid by government, once per rail period and there are 13 such periods in each financial year. Reliable data therefore cannot be produced from 1 October exactly as the accounting dates do not align.
However, periodic data on operational support payments made to each franchised operator from 1 March 2020 to 6 February 2021, is published at the link below:
Financial Year 2020-21 Rail Period 7 started on 20 September 2020, and 1 October 2020 fell within it.
The nine ERMA train operators include: C2C (Essex Thameside), South Western Railway, TransPennine Express, West Midlands Trains, Greater Anglia (East Anglia), GTR (Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern), Chiltern Railways, East Midlands Railways, and Avanti West Coast (West Coast Partnership).
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will announce the process for securing a private sector development partner for the Southern Railway Link to Heathrow Airport.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Department remains committed that the Southern Access to Heathrow scheme, formerly known as Southern Rail Link to Heathrow, should be a ‘pathfinder’ project with increased levels of market involvement.
Government intends to provide further guidance to the market regarding the proposed commercial direction and next steps, including the process for selection of a development partner in Summer 2021.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Crewe station will be ready for the arrival of Phase 2a of HS2.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Crewe is a vital railway asset and a strategically important location on the rail network, but as the existing infrastructure is complex, the solution has to be right for the arrival of HS2. In March 2018, the Secretary of State confirmed the Government’s support for the Crewe Hub vision, and announced that plans for HS2 Phase 2a will include 400m platforms at Crewe station to allow for the splitting and joining of HS2 services. In addition, a more efficient design is proposed for the platform on the Manchester independent lines and a change to the design of the southern connection to the HS2 lines.
Asked by: Kieran Mullan (Conservative - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans the Government has to support the realisation of the Crewe Hub vision.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Crewe is a vital railway asset and a strategically important location on the rail network, but as the existing infrastructure is complex, the solution has to be right for the arrival of HS2. In March 2018, the Secretary of State confirmed the Government’s support for the Crewe Hub vision, and announced that plans for HS2 Phase 2a will include 400m platforms at Crewe station to allow for the splitting and joining of HS2 services. In addition, a more efficient design is proposed for the platform on the Manchester independent lines and a change to the design of the southern connection to the HS2 lines.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what financial support his Department is providing to (a) GTR Southern Rail and (b) the rail industry more widely during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The total payments made to all train operators under franchise contracts with Department (including those in public ownership) from 1 March to 20 September 2020 was £4.07billion. Of this, £636million relates to the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise (i.e. GTR). Full payment data for this period has been published on www.gov.uk and we will continue to release periodic updates there in future.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made with the deployment by Network Rail of the Hubble vegetation management tool since it was awarded First of a Kind funding by his Department through Innovate UK in 2019.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Hubble was funded and supported by Network Rail’s Anglia Route and trialled on its Southern Route. Other Network Rail routes are able to use Hubble or other technology solutions as appropriate.
Hubble was a recipient of First of a Kind (FOAK) funding from my Department. Funding under FOAK is not a guarantee that products will be taken into service. Network Rail and operators determine which products best meet their operational needs.