Call for Evidence

The Transport Committee is conducting pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Rail Reform Bill.

The draft Bill proposes the primary legislative measures required to deliver rail reform envisaged by the Plan for Rail, including the creation of Great British Railways, a new body which will have responsibility for infrastructure, operations, and oversight of the rail industry in Great Britain.

The proposed legislative measures and policy intent were publicly consulted on in June 2022 and the Government’s response to that consultation has been published alongside the draft Bill.

Call for evidence

The Committee would welcome written submissions which address at least one of the following questions, or make suggestions for amendments. We emphasise that this inquiry relates to the scope of the draft Bill, and not to issues relating to rail reform more generally.

The deadline for written submissions is Wednesday 27 March 2024.

The Integrated Rail Body

• If enacted, would the draft Bill provide the necessary legislative foundations for an integrated rail body with franchising powers (Great British Railways), as envisioned in the Plan for Rail?
• Will the integrated rail body (IRB), as proposed in the draft Bill, achieve the Government’s aim of a ‘guiding mind’, providing: (i) better accountability, (ii) more reliable services, (iii) greater efficiency, and (iv) coordinated growth, across both passenger and freight sectors?
• Would the provisions of the draft Bill establish an IRB with the independence and accountability to achieve its aims? If not, what amendments would be needed?
• Are the arrangements set out for the granting and amendment of the IRB’s licence and the inclusion of specific conditions within that licence appropriate?
• What will be the effect of the requirement on the IRB to prepare an annual report setting out what it has done to increase private sector involvement in the running of railway services?
• What arrangements should be put in place for scrutiny of the IRB’s business plan?
• Are there further elements of the Government’s aims for the IRB that should be given a statutory footing?

Other provisions

• Are the interests of passengers and freight users sufficiently promoted by the provisions of the draft Bill?
• Does the draft Bill make effective provision for the role of the Office of Rail and Road?
• What assessment should be made of the draft Bill’s provision that the Scottish and Welsh governments may arrange for the IRB to exercise their devolved franchising powers?
• What will be the effect of the implementation in UK law of the Luxembourg Rail Protocol? Is the range of powers granted to the Secretary of State in clause 15 necessary to achieve the aims of the Protocol?

General

• Are the delegated powers envisaged by the draft Bill necessary and sufficient to meet its aims?
• What lessons should be learned from previous legislative changes to the institutional architecture of the rail sector?
• Are there further provisions within the draft Bill that the Committee should focus its scrutiny on?