Railways Bill — Bill 325 2024-26 (as introduced) - html
Parliament bill publication: Bill. Commons.
Railways Bill [As Introduced]
Railways Bill
EXPLANATORY NOTES
Explanatory notes to the Bill, prepared by the Department for Transport, are published
separately as Bill 325—EN.
EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Secretary Heidi Alexander has made the following statement under section 19(1)(a) of the Human Rights Act 1998:
In my view the provisions of the Railways Bill are compatible with the Convention rights.
ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENTS
Secretary Heidi Alexander has made the following statements under section 20(2)(a)
and (3) of the Environment Act 2021.
In my view—
(a) the Railways Bill contains provision which, if enacted, would be environmental law, and
(b) the Bill will not have the effect of reducing the level of environmental protection
provided for by any existing environmental law.
Railways Bill
[As Introduced]
CONTENTS
Part 1
The new regime for the railways
Chapter 1
Great British Railways
Designation and status
1
Great British Railways
2
Crown status etc
Functions
3
Functions
4
Exercise of functions of Scottish and Welsh Ministers
5
Co-operation with relevant local government bodies
6
Co-operation with Transport for London
Directions and guidance
7
Directions by Secretary of State
8
Directions by Scottish Ministers
9
Guidance by Secretary of State
10
Guidance by Scottish Ministers
Licensing
11
Licensing
Financial arrangements etc
12
Funding
13
Charging and terms and conditions
14
Levy payable to ORR
Chapter 2
Exercise of railway functions
Strategies and target
15
Rail strategy
16
Duty of Great British Railways and ORR to have regard to strategies etc
17
Rail freight target
Duties
18
General duties of Ministers, Great British Railways and ORR
19
Safety duty of Ministers and ORR
20
Competition duty of ORR
21
Duty of ORR to have regard to Secretary of State’s guidance
22
Duty of ORR to have regard to Scottish Ministers’ guidance
Scotland and Wales
23
Memorandum of understanding: Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers
24
Memorandum of understanding: Secretary of State and Welsh Ministers
Part 2
Passenger and station services
Chapter 1
Passenger services
Designation and exemption of services
25
Designation of services by Secretary of State
26
Designation of services by Scottish Ministers
27
Designation of services by Welsh Ministers
28
Exemption from designation: power of Secretary of State
29
Exemption from designation: powers of Scottish and Welsh Ministers
30
Exemption from designation: supplementary
Provision of services
31
Provision of railway passenger services
32
Contracts awarded under section 31: supplementary
Fares
33
Fares
34
Discount fare schemes
Interpretation
35
Interpretation of Chapter 1 of Part 2
Chapter 2
The Passengers’ Council
General
36
General duties of the Council
37
Keeping matters under review and collecting information
38
Exercise of functions under section 37
Investigations
39
Investigations
40
Power to obtain information
41
Protection of confidential information
42
Representations and referrals
43
Reports
Complaints and dispute resolution
44
Complaints
45
Dispute resolution
Standards and improvement plans
46
Standards
47
Improvement plans
Other functions
48
Advice about railway passenger services and station services
49
Consultation about railway passenger services and station services
50
Publication of information and advice
Miscellaneous
51
Power to make exclusions
52
Interpretation of Chapter 2 of Part 2
Chapter 3
The London Transport Users’ Committee
53
General duties of the LTUC
54
Collection of information by the LTUC
55
Investigations by the LTUC
56
Complaints to the LTUC
57
Publication of information and advice by the LTUC
58
Restrictions on disclosure of information by the LTUC
Part 3
Miscellaneous provisions
Chapter 1
Access to infrastructure and services
Access to and use of GBR infrastructure
59
Access and use policy
60
Infrastructure capacity plan
61
The working timetable
62
Preparation of working timetable
63
Capacity duty
64
Charging scheme
65
Performance scheme
66
Consultation
67
Appeals against access, charging and performance decisions
68
Appeal procedure
Access agreements and rights
69
Access agreements
70
Access rights
71
Operation of existing agreements and rights
Supplementary
72
Regulations about non-GBR infrastructure, facilities and services
73
Interpretation of Chapter 1 of Part 3
Chapter 2
Other provisions
The ORR
74
Monitoring Great British Railways
75
Miscellaneous functions of ORR
Publication of information
76
Publication of information by ORR
77
Publication of information by Secretary of State
78
Publication of information by Scottish Ministers
79
Publication of information by Welsh Ministers
Co-operation etc
80
Duty to consult Scottish and Welsh Ministers
81
Duty to consult mayoral combined authorities
82
Duty to consult Transport for London
83
Advice from relevant local government bodies
84
Advice from Transport for London
Licensing etc of train drivers
85
Licensing etc of train drivers
International interests in railway rolling stock
86
Cape Town Convention and Luxembourg Protocol
Part 4
General
87
Minor and consequential amendments
88
Power of Secretary of State to make consequential provision
89
Regulations
90
General interpretation
91
Extent
92
Commencement
93
Short title
Schedule 1
Licensing of Great British Railways
Schedule 2
Funding Great British Railways
Part 1
Funding by the Secretary of State
Part 2
Funding by the Scottish Ministers
Part 3
Subsidy Control
Part 4
Interpretation
Schedule 3
Minor and consequential amendments
[As Introduced]
A
bill
to
Make provision about railways and railway services; and for connected purposes.
B
e it enacted
by the King’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords
Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by
the authority of the same, as follows:—
[
p
age
1
]
Part
1
The
new regime for the railways
Chapter
1
Great
British Railways
[page
1:
line
5
]
Designation
and status
1
Great British Railways
The
Secretary of State may by regulations designate a body corporate as Great British
Railways.
2
Crown status etc
[page
1:
line
10
]
(1)
Great British Railways is not to be regarded as a servant or agent of the
Crown,
or as enjoying any status, immunity or privilege of the Crown.
(2)
Great British Railways’ property is not to be regarded as property of, or
property
held on behalf of, the Crown.
(3)
Service as a member of staff of Great British Railways is not service in the
[page
1:
line
15
]
civil
service of the State.
(4)
Employment by Great British Railways is not Crown employment for the
purposes
of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992
(see
section 273 of that Act).
[
p
age
2
]
(5)
The Secretary of State, the Scottish Ministers and the Welsh Ministers are not
to
be regarded as shadow directors of Great British Railways for the purpose
of
any provision of the Companies Acts.
(6)
In this section “the Companies Acts” has the same meaning as in the
[page
2:
line
5
]
Companies
Act 2006 (see section 2(1) of that Act).
Functions
3
Functions
(1)
Great British Railways has the following general functions—
(a)
managing, operating, maintaining, renewing and improving railway
[page
2:
line
10
]
infrastructure,
(b)
providing railway passenger services,
(c)
determining the fares payable for travel on the railway passenger services it
provides,
(d)
selling tickets for travel on railway passenger services or securing that tickets
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2:
line
15
]
are
available for sale,
(e)
providing services to facilitate the provision and use of railway services,
including
where the railway services are provided by persons other than
Great
British Railways,
(f)
carrying out research and development and supporting innovation in relation
[page
2:
line
20
]
to
railways and railway services, and
(g)
publishing advice and standards on matters related to railways and railway
services.
(2)
Great British Railways’ function under
subsection (1)
(a)
includes—
(a)
making strategic plans as to the future provision of railway infrastructure
[page
2:
line
25
]
in
Great Britain and implementing those plans, and
(b)
making decisions about access to, and the use of, railway infrastructure for
the
operation of trains.
(3)
The Secretary of State may by regulations confer on Great British Railways such
other
functions relating to railways or railway services as the Secretary of State
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2:
line
30
]
considers
appropriate.
(4)
In this Act “statutory functions”, in relation to Great British Railways, means—
(a)
the functions mentioned in
subsection (1)
,
(b)
any functions conferred by regulations under
subsection (3)
,
(c)
the power under
section 13
to charge and set terms and conditions,
[page
2:
line
35
]
and
(d)
any other functions conferred by this or any other Act, or by a statutory
instrument,
that are exercisable by Great British Railways,
but
does not include any functions under the 2016 Regulations so far as
relating
to service facilities or the supply of services.
[
p
age
3
]
(5)
As well as, or instead of, exercising its statutory functions itself, Great British
Railways
may exercise those functions through one or more GBR companies.
(6)
Nothing in
this section
or
section 13
is to be read as limiting any powers
which
Great British Railways has as a result of being a body corporate.
[page
3:
line
5
]
4
Exercise of functions of Scottish and Welsh Ministers
(1)
The Scottish Ministers and the Welsh Ministers may each make arrangements
for
any of their functions relating to railways or railway services to be
exercised
on their behalf by—
(a)
Great British Railways,
[page
3:
line
10
]
(b)
a subsidiary of Great British Railways,
(c)
in the case of functions of the Scottish Ministers, a company jointly
owned
by the Scottish Ministers and Great British Railways, or
(d)
in the case of functions of the Welsh Ministers, a company jointly
owned
by the Welsh Ministers and Great British Railways.
[page
3:
line
15
]
(2)
Before making, varying or revoking arrangements under this section the
Ministers
must consult—
(a)
the Secretary of State, and
(b)
Great British Railways.
(3)
The Ministers on whose behalf functions are to be exercised in accordance
[page
3:
line
20
]
with
arrangements under this section must publish a document setting out
the
terms of the arrangements.
(4)
Arrangements under this section do not affect the Ministers’ responsibility
for
the exercise of their functions.
(5)
Where arrangements under this section provide for the exercise of functions
[page
3:
line
25
]
by
Great British Railways,
section 3
(5)
applies in relation to the functions as
it
applies in relation to statutory functions of Great British Railways.
(6)
Where arrangements under this section provide for the exercise of functions
by
Great British Railways or a GBR company, the functions in question are
to
be treated for the purposes of sections
7
to
10
,
13
and
16
to
19
as statutory
[page
3:
line
30
]
functions
of Great British Railways (instead of as functions of the Scottish
Ministers
or the Welsh Ministers).
5
Co-operation with relevant local government bodies
(1)
Great British Railways may enter into arrangements with a relevant local
government
body about the exercise by Great British Railways of its statutory
[page
3:
line
35
]
functions
in relation to railways and railway services in the body’s area.
(2)
The arrangements may include arrangements under which sums become due
from
the body to Great British Railways.
(3)
A relevant local government body and Great British Railways must provide to each
other
such information—
[
p
age
4
]
(a)
as the other reasonably requires for the purpose of exercising its functions
in
relation to railways and railway services, and
(b)
which it is lawful to disclose apart from
this subsection
.
(4)
For the purpose of
subsection (3)
a reference to the functions of Great British
[page
4:
line
5
]
Railways
in relation to railways and railway services is to be read as a
reference
to its statutory functions in relation to railways and railway services
in
the body’s area.
(5)
In
this section
“a relevant local government body” means—
(a)
a mayoral combined authority,
[page
4:
line
10
]
(b)
a mayoral combined county authority, or
(c)
a Passenger Transport Executive for an integrated transport area.
6
Co-operation with Transport for London
(1)
Section 175 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (co-operation) is
amended
as follows.
[page
4:
line
15
]
(2)
For the heading substitute “Co-operation with Great British Railways”.
(3)
In subsection (1), in the words before paragraph (a), for “the Secretary of
State”
substitute “Great British Railways”.
(4)
In subsection (1B), for “The Secretary of State” substitute “Great British
Railways”.
[page
4:
line
20
]
(5)
In subsections (2) and (2A), for “the Secretary of State” substitute “Great
British
Railways”.
(6)
For subsection (3) substitute—
“
(3)
For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2) a reference to the functions
of
Great British Railways is to be read as a reference to Great British
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4:
line
25
]
Railways’
statutory functions in relation to railways in Greater London
and
London railway passenger services.
”
Directions
and guidance
7
Directions by Secretary of State
(1)
The Secretary of State may give directions to Great British Railways as to the
[page
4:
line
30
]
exercise
of its statutory functions.
(2)
A direction under this section may provide, in particular, that a function is
only
to be exercised—
(a)
after consulting the Secretary of State, or
(b)
with the Secretary of State’s consent.
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4:
line
35
]
(3)
The Secretary of State may vary or revoke a direction under this section.
(4)
The Secretary of State—
[
p
age
5
]
(a)
must obtain the consent of the Scottish Ministers before exercising
powers
under this section, other than powers relating to functions
under
Chapter 1
of
Part 3
, in a manner that directly affects the
operation
of a GBR-provided Scottish service, and
[page
5:
line
5
]
(b)
must obtain the consent of the Welsh Ministers before exercising
powers
under this section, other than powers relating to functions
under
Chapter 1
of
Part 3
, in a manner that directly affects the
operation
of a GBR-provided Welsh service.
(5)
The Secretary of State must publish—
[page
5:
line
10
]
(a)
a direction under this section, and
(b)
any variation or revocation of the direction.
(6)
The duty to comply with a direction under this section is enforceable by the
Secretary
of State in civil proceedings—
(a)
for an injunction,
[page
5:
line
15
]
(b)
for specific performance of a statutory duty under section 45 of the
Court
of Session Act 1988, or
(c)
for any other appropriate remedy or relief.
(7)
In this section—
“
GBR-provided
Scottish service”
means a railway passenger service
[page
5:
line
20
]
designated
by the Scottish Ministers under
section 26
that is being
provided
by Great British Railways or a GBR company—
(a)
under arrangements made under
section 4
, or
(b)
under a public service contract awarded as mentioned in
section
31
(3)
(b)
;
“
[page
5:
line
25
]
GBR-provided
Welsh service”
means a railway passenger service
designated
by the Welsh Ministers under
section 27
that is being
provided
by Great British Railways or a GBR company—
(a)
under arrangements made under
section 4
, or
(b)
under a public service contract awarded as mentioned in
section
[page
5:
line
30
]
31
(4)
(b)
.
8
Directions by Scottish Ministers
(1)
The Scottish Ministers may give directions to Great British Railways as to the
exercise
in Scotland of its statutory functions so far as relating to Scottish
railway
activities.
[page
5:
line
35
]
(2)
A direction under this section may provide, in particular, that a function is
only
to be exercised—
(a)
after consulting the Scottish Ministers, or
(b)
with the Scottish Ministers’ consent.
(3)
The Scottish Ministers may vary or revoke a direction under this section.
[page
5:
line
40
]
(4)
Before giving, varying or revoking a direction under this section the Scottish
Ministers
must consult the Secretary of State.
[
p
age
6
]
(5)
The Scottish Ministers must publish—
(a)
a direction under this section, and
(b)
any variation or revocation of the direction under
subsection (3)
.
(6)
The duty to comply with a direction under this section is enforceable by the
[page
6:
line
5
]
Scottish
Ministers in civil proceedings—
(a)
for an injunction,
(b)
for specific performance of a statutory duty under section 45 of the
Court
of Session Act 1988, or
(c)
for any other appropriate remedy or relief.
[page
6:
line
10
]
(7)
The Secretary of State may revoke a direction given under this section if—
(a)
the direction is inconsistent or in conflict with a direction given under
section
7
,
(b)
it appears to the Secretary of State that the direction will affect railway
activities
that are not Scottish railway activities, or
[page
6:
line
15
]
(c)
it appears to the Secretary of State that the direction, or any part of
it—
(i)
would not be within the legislative competence of the Scottish
Parliament
if it were contained in an Act of that Parliament,
and
[page
6:
line
20
]
(ii)
does not relate to matters in relation to which the Scottish
Ministers
have functions.
(8)
Before revoking a direction under
subsection (7)
the Secretary of State must
consult
the Scottish Ministers.
(9)
The Secretary of State must publish any revocation of a direction under
[page
6:
line
25
]
subsection
(7)
.
(10)
In this section “Scottish railway activities” has the same meaning as in
Schedule
2
(see
paragraph 16
).
9
Guidance by Secretary of State
(1)
The Secretary of State may give guidance to Great British Railways as to the
[page
6:
line
30
]
exercise
of its statutory functions.
(2)
The Secretary of State may vary or revoke guidance given under this section.
(3)
Subsection
(4)
of
section 7
applies to the power of the Secretary of State to
give
guidance under this section as it applies to the power of the Secretary
of
State to give directions under that section.
[page
6:
line
35
]
(4)
The Secretary of State must publish—
(a)
guidance given under this section, and
(b)
any variation or revocation of the guidance.
(5)
Great British Railways must have regard to guidance given under this section.
[
p
age
7
]
10
Guidance by Scottish Ministers
(1)
The Scottish Ministers may give guidance to Great British Railways as to the
exercise
of its statutory functions in Scotland so far as relating to Scottish
railway
activities.
[page
7:
line
5
]
(2)
The Scottish Ministers may vary or revoke guidance given under
this section
.
(3)
The Scottish Ministers must publish—
(a)
guidance given under
this section
, and
(b)
any variation or revocation of the guidance.
(4)
Great British Railways must have regard to guidance given under
this section
.
[page
7:
line
10
]
(5)
In
this section
“Scottish railway activities” has the same meaning as in
Schedule
2
(see
paragraph 16
).
Licensing
11
Licensing
Schedule
1
contains provision in relation to the licensing of Great British
[page
7:
line
15
]
Railways.
Financial
arrangements etc
12
Funding
Schedule
2
contains provision in relation to funding the activities of Great British
Railways.
[page
7:
line
20
]
13
Charging and terms and conditions
(1)
Great British Railways may make such charges, and set such terms and
conditions,
for things done in the exercise of its statutory functions as it thinks
fit.
(2)
Subsection (1) does not apply in relation to a statutory function to the extent
[page
7:
line
25
]
that
provision as to charges or terms and conditions for the exercise of the
function
is made—
(a)
by or under another provision of this Act, or
(b)
by or under any other Act.
14
Levy payable to ORR
[page
7:
line
30
]
(1)
The ORR may by notice require Great British Railways to pay to it a levy.
(2)
The notice must provide for—
(a)
the period in respect of which the levy is payable (“the charging
period”),
[
p
age
8
]
(b)
the amount of the levy which is payable in respect of that period, and
(c)
how and when payments are to be made.
(3)
The amount of a levy in respect of a charging period must be such amount
as
the ORR reasonably expects to incur in exercising its railway functions in
[page
8:
line
5
]
respect
of the charging period.
(4)
Provision under
subsection (2)
(c)
may, in particular, include provision for
payment
by instalments.
(5)
The ORR may revise a notice under
this section
by a further notice.
(6)
The ORR may refund any amount which, further to any revised notice under
[page
8:
line
10
]
subsection
(5)
, appears to have been overpaid to it.
(7)
In
this section
“railway functions” means the functions of the ORR relating
to
railways and railway services, other than its safety functions.
Chapter
2
Exercise
of railway functions
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8:
line
15
]
Strategies
and target
15
Rail strategy
(1)
The Secretary of State must prepare and publish a document that sets out the
Secretary
of State’s long term strategy for—
(a)
the development and use of the railway network in Great Britain, and
[page
8:
line
20
]
(b)
the railway services that the Secretary of State wishes to see provided
in
Great Britain.
(2)
That document is referred to in this section and
section 16
as “the rail
strategy”.
(3)
The rail strategy may not contain provision about functions of the Scottish
[page
8:
line
25
]
Ministers.
(4)
The Secretary of State—
(a)
must keep the rail strategy under review, and
(b)
may revise or replace it.
(5)
If the Secretary of State revises or replaces the rail strategy the Secretary of
[page
8:
line
30
]
State
must publish the revised or replacement strategy.
(6)
When preparing, revising or replacing the rail strategy, the Secretary of State
must
consult the Welsh Ministers and the Passengers’ Council.
(7)
The requirement in
subsection (6)
may be satisfied in relation to the
preparation
of the rail strategy by consultation before this section comes into
[page
8:
line
35
]
force
(as well as by consultation after that time).
[
p
age
9
]
16
Duty of Great British Railways and ORR to have regard to strategies etc
(1)
Subsection
(2)
applies in relation to—
(a)
the exercise by Great British Railways of its statutory functions, and
(b)
the exercise by the ORR of its functions relating to railways and
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9:
line
5
]
railway
services, other than—
(i)
its safety functions;
(ii)
its functions relating to the licensing or certification of persons
who
drive trains used to provide railway services;
(iii)
the functions exercisable by it by virtue of section 67(3) of the
[page
9:
line
10
]
Railways
Act 1993.
(2)
When exercising their functions they must have regard to—
(a)
the rail strategy,
(b)
the Wales Transport Strategy published under section 2 of the
Transport
(Wales) Act 2006, and
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9:
line
15
]
(c)
the strategy published by the Scottish Ministers under section 5 of the
Railways
Act 2005.
(3)
When exercising its statutory functions, Great British Railways must have
regard
to—
(a)
the local transport plan of each mayoral combined authority and each
[page
9:
line
20
]
mayoral
combined county authority, and
(b)
the Mayor of London’s transport strategy.
17
Rail freight target
(1)
The Secretary of State must set and publish a target to increase the use of the
railway
network in Great Britain for the carriage of goods.
[page
9:
line
25
]
(2)
The Secretary of State—
(a)
must keep the target under review, and
(b)
may revise or replace it.
(3)
If the Secretary of State revises or replaces the target the Secretary of State
must
publish the revised or replacement target.
[page
9:
line
30
]
(4)
Great British Railways must, when exercising its statutory functions, have
regard
to—
(a)
the target set by the Secretary of State under this section, and
(b)
any strategy or policy of the Scottish Ministers relating to the use of
the
railway network in Scotland for the carriage of goods.
[page
9:
line
35
]
Duties
18
General duties of Ministers, Great British Railways and ORR
(1)
This section applies in relation to—
[
p
age
10
]
(a)
the exercise by the Secretary of State, the Scottish Ministers and the
Welsh
Ministers of their functions relating to railways and railway
services,
(b)
the exercise by Great British Railways of its statutory functions, and
[page
10:
line
5
]
(c)
the exercise by the ORR of its functions relating to railways and
railway
services, other than—
(i)
its safety functions;
(ii)
its functions relating to the licensing or certification of persons
who
drive trains used to provide railway services;
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10:
line
10
]
(iii)
the functions exercisable by it by virtue of section 67(3) of the
Railways
Act 1993.
(2)
They must exercise the functions—
(a)
in the manner best calculated to promote the interests of users and
potential
users of railway passenger services including, in particular,
[page
10:
line
15
]
the
needs of disabled persons,
(b)
in the manner best calculated to promote the use of the railway
network
in Great Britain for the carriage of goods,
(c)
so as to promote high standards of railway service performance,
(d)
so as to enable persons providing railway services to plan the future
[page
10:
line
20
]
of
their businesses with a reasonable degree of assurance,
(e)
in the manner best calculated to be in the public interest, and
(f)
taking into account the costs that will need to be met from public
funds
and the need to make efficient use of those funds,
balancing
the requirements of paragraphs
(a)
to
(f)
as seems to them
[page
10:
line
25
]
appropriate
in the circumstances.
(3)
In this section—
“
disabled
person”
means a person who is a disabled person for the
purposes
of the Equality Act 2010 (see section 6(2) and (4) of, and
Schedule
28 to, that Act);
“
[page
10:
line
30
]
public
interest”
includes, in particular, the public interest in—
(a)
the social and economic benefits derived from railway services,
and
(b)
the effect the provision of railway services has on the
environment;
“
[page
10:
line
35
]
railway
service performance”
includes, in particular, performance in
securing
each of the following in relation to railway services—
(a)
reliability (including punctuality), and
(b)
the avoidance or mitigation of passenger overcrowding.
(4)
In its application in relation to the exercise by Great British Railways of its
[page
10:
line
40
]
statutory
functions, this section has effect subject to
section 63
(GBR’s capacity
duty).
[
p
age
11
]
19
Safety duty of Ministers and ORR
(1)
This section applies in relation to—
(a)
the exercise by the Secretary of State, the Scottish Ministers and the
Welsh
Ministers of their functions relating to railways and railway
[page
11:
line
5
]
services,
(b)
the exercise by the ORR of its functions relating to railways and
railway
services, other than—
(i)
its safety functions;
(ii)
its functions relating to the licensing or certification of persons
[page
11:
line
10
]
who
drive trains used to provide railway services;
(iii)
the functions exercisable by it by virtue of section 67(3) of the
Railways
Act 1993.
(2)
When exercising those functions, they must take into account the need to
protect
all persons from dangers arising from the operation of railways.
[page
11:
line
15
]
20
Competition duty of ORR
(1)
This section applies in relation to the exercise by the ORR of its functions
relating
to railways and railway services, other than—
(a)
its safety functions;
(b)
its functions relating to the licensing or certification of persons who
[page
11:
line
20
]
drive
trains used to provide railway services;
(c)
its functions under
Schedule 2
;
(d)
its functions under
Chapter 1
of
Part 3
;
(e)
its functions under sections 55 to 58 of the Railways Act 1993;
(f)
the functions exercisable by it by virtue of section 67(3) of that Act;
[page
11:
line
25
]
(g)
its functions under
section 69A
of that Act.
(2)
The ORR must exercise the functions in the manner which it considers best
calculated
to promote competition in the provision of railway services for the
benefit
of users of railway services.
21
Duty of ORR to have regard to Secretary of State’s guidance
[page
11:
line
30
]
(1)
The Secretary of State may give the ORR guidance as to the exercise of its
functions
relating to railways and railway services.
(2)
But guidance given under this section may not contain provision as to the
exercise
by the ORR of—
(a)
the functions exercisable by it by virtue of section 67(3) of the Railways
[page
11:
line
35
]
Act
1993,
(b)
its functions as an enforcing authority for the purposes of the Health
and
Safety at Work etc Act 1974, or
(c)
its functions relating to the licensing or certification of persons who
drive
trains used to provide railway services.
[
p
age
12
]
(3)
The Secretary of State may vary or revoke guidance given under this section.
(4)
Before giving, varying or revoking guidance under this section the Secretary
of
State must consult the Welsh Ministers.
(5)
The Secretary of State must publish—
[page
12:
line
5
]
(a)
guidance given under this section, and
(b)
any variation or revocation of the guidance.
(6)
The ORR must have regard to guidance given under this section.
22
Duty of ORR to have regard to Scottish Ministers’ guidance
(1)
The Scottish Ministers may give guidance to the ORR as to the exercise of its
[page
12:
line
10
]
functions—
(a)
relating to railway services wholly or partly in Scotland, or
(b)
otherwise relating to railways in Scotland.
(2)
But guidance given under this section may not contain provision as to the
exercise
by the ORR of—
[page
12:
line
15
]
(a)
the functions exercisable by it by virtue of section 67(3) of the Railways
Act
1993,
(b)
its functions as an enforcing authority for the purposes of the Health
and
Safety at Work etc Act 1974, or
(c)
its functions relating to the licensing or certification of persons who
[page
12:
line
20
]
drive
trains used to provide railway services.
(3)
The Scottish Ministers may vary or revoke guidance given under this section.
(4)
The Scottish Ministers must publish—
(a)
guidance given under this section, and
(b)
any variation or revocation of the guidance.
[page
12:
line
25
]
(5)
The ORR must have regard to guidance given under this section.
Scotland
and Wales
23
Memorandum of understandingSecretary of State and Scottish Ministers
(1)
The Secretary of State and the Scottish Ministers must prepare and publish
a
memorandum of understanding setting out how they will work together
[page
12:
line
30
]
in
the exercise of their respective functions in relation to railways and railway
services.
(2)
The memorandum may, in particular—
(a)
contain provision about the role that the Scottish Ministers are to have
in
relation to the governance and management of Great British
[page
12:
line
35
]
Railways,
(b)
set out the objectives of the Secretary of State and the Scottish Ministers
in
relation to the integration of the management and operation of the
[
p
age
13
]
railway
passenger services to be provided under
section 31
(3)
and
railway
infrastructure in Scotland, and any steps they intend to take
in
order to facilitate such integration,
(c)
set out arrangements for sharing information between the Secretary
[page
13:
line
5
]
of
State and the Scottish Ministers,
(d)
contain provision about the use to be made of the powers to give
directions
under sections
7
and
8
,
(e)
set out how the memorandum is to be published, and
(f)
set out arrangements for reviewing and amending the memorandum.
[page
13:
line
10
]
24
Memorandum of understandingSecretary of State and Welsh Ministers
(1)
The Secretary of State and the Welsh Ministers must prepare and publish a
memorandum
of understanding setting out how they will work together in
the
exercise of their respective functions in relation to railways and railway
services.
[page
13:
line
15
]
(2)
The memorandum may, in particular—
(a)
contain provision about the role that the Welsh Ministers are to have
in
relation to the governance and management of Great British
Railways,
(b)
identify those services that involve the carriage of passengers by
[page
13:
line
20
]
railway
in England that the Secretary of State and the Welsh Ministers
would
like to be provided together with services designated by the
Welsh
Ministers under
section 27
,
(c)
set out the objectives of the Secretary of State and the Welsh Ministers
in
relation to the integration of the management and operation of
[page
13:
line
25
]
Welsh
services and the railway infrastructure required for their
operation,
and any steps they intend to take in order to facilitate such
integration,
(d)
set out arrangements for sharing information between the Secretary
of
State and the Welsh Ministers,
[page
13:
line
30
]
(e)
set out how the memorandum is to be published, and
(f)
set out arrangements for reviewing and amending the memorandum.
[
p
age
14
]
Part
2
Passenger
and station services
Chapter
1
Passenger
services
[page
14:
line
5
]
Designation
and exemption of services
25
Designation of services by Secretary of State
(1)
The Secretary of State must designate railway passenger services, or a
description
of railway passenger services, the provision of which may be
secured
by the Secretary of State under section
31
.
[page
14:
line
10
]
(2)
The Secretary of State may not designate railway passenger services which
are,
or designate a description of railway passenger services which includes—
(a)
Scotland-only services, or
(b)
Wales-only services.
(3)
The Secretary of State is not required to designate—
[page
14:
line
15
]
(a)
cross-border services already designated by the Scottish Ministers
under
section 26
, or
(b)
Welsh services so far as already designated by the Welsh Ministers
under
section
27
.
(4)
The Secretary of State may vary or revoke a designation.
[page
14:
line
20
]
(5)
The Secretary of State must consult the Scottish Ministers before—
(a)
designating a cross-border service, or a description of services which
includes
a cross-border service, or
(b)
varying or revoking a designation of a cross-border service, or a
description
of services which includes a cross-border service.
[page
14:
line
25
]
(6)
The Secretary of State must publish a designation under this section, and any
variation
or revocation of a designation under this section, in such manner
as
the Secretary of State considers appropriate.
26
Designation of services by Scottish Ministers
(1)
The Scottish Ministers must designate railway passenger services, or a
[page
14:
line
30
]
description
of railway passenger services—
(a)
which may be provided by the Scottish Ministers under section
31
, or
(b)
the provision of which may be secured by the Scottish Ministers under
that
section.
(2)
The Scottish Ministers may only designate railway passenger services, or a
[page
14:
line
35
]
description
of railway passenger services, if the services are—
(a)
Scotland-only services,
[
p
age
15
]
(b)
cross-border services which the Scottish Ministers consider should be
provided
together with designated Scotland-only services, or
(c)
cross-border services which were provided by, or the provision of
which
was secured by, the Scottish Ministers under section 30 of the
[page
15:
line
5
]
Railways
Act 1993 immediately before this section came into force.
(3)
The Scottish Ministers may vary or revoke a designation.
(4)
The Scottish Ministers must consult the Secretary of State before—
(a)
designating a cross-border service, or a description of services which
includes
a cross-border service, or
[page
15:
line
10
]
(b)
varying or revoking a designation of a cross-border service, or a
description
of services which includes a cross-border service.
(5)
The Scottish Ministers must publish a designation under this section, and any
variation
or revocation of a designation under this section, in such manner
as
they consider appropriate.
[page
15:
line
15
]
27
Designation of services by Welsh Ministers
(1)
The Welsh Ministers must designate railway passenger services, or a
description
of railway passenger services—
(a)
which may be provided by the Welsh Ministers under section
31
, or
(b)
the provision of which may be secured by the Welsh Ministers under
[page
15:
line
20
]
that
section.
(2)
The Welsh Ministers may only designate railway passenger services, or a
description
of railway passenger services, if the services are—
(a)
Wales-only services, or
(b)
Welsh components of Welsh services which the Welsh Ministers
[page
15:
line
25
]
consider
should be provided together with designated Wales-only
services.
(3)
The Welsh Ministers may vary or revoke a designation under this section.
(4)
The Welsh Ministers must publish a designation under this section, and any
variation
or revocation of a designation under this section, in such manner
[page
15:
line
30
]
as
they consider appropriate.
28
Exemption from designationpower of Secretary of State
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations provide that railway passenger
services
specified in the regulations are exempt from designation under this
Chapter.
[page
15:
line
35
]
(2)
The Secretary of State may not specify Scotland-only services or Wales-only
services
in the regulations.
(3)
The Secretary of State must consult—
(a)
the Scottish Ministers before making regulations under this section
specifying
cross-border services, and
[
p
age
16
]
(b)
the Welsh Ministers before making regulations under this section
specifying
Welsh services.
29
Exemption from designationpowers of Scottish and Welsh Ministers
(1)
The Scottish Ministers may by regulations provide that Scotland-only services
[page
16:
line
5
]
specified
in the regulations are exempt from designation under
this Chapter
.
(2)
Regulations under
subsection (1)
are subject to the negative procedure (see
section
28
of the
Interpretation and Legislative Reform (Scotland) Act 2010
(asp
10)).
(3)
The Welsh Ministers may by regulations made by Welsh statutory instrument
[page
16:
line
10
]
provide
that Wales-only services specified in the regulations are exempt from
designation
under
this Chapter
.
(4)
Regulations under
subsection (3)
are subject to the Senedd annulment
procedure.
30
Exemption from designationsupplementary
[page
16:
line
15
]
(1)
Regulations under
section 28
or
29
may specify—
(a)
passenger railway services provided by a description of persons or a
particular
person;
(b)
passenger railway services generally, a description of services or a
particular
service, or a part of any such services or service.
[page
16:
line
20
]
(2)
Regulations under
section 28
or
29
may provide that the passenger railway
services
specified in the regulations are exempt from designation under this
Chapter—
(a)
subject to compliance with conditions specified in the regulations;
(b)
for a period specified in or determined in accordance with the
[page
16:
line
25
]
regulations.
Provision
of services
31
Provision of railway passenger services
(1)
The Secretary of State may secure the provision of a railway passenger service
designated
under
section 25
.
[page
16:
line
30
]
(2)
The Secretary of State may do so only by making a direct award of a public service
contract,
to one or more of Great British Railways or a GBR company, in accordance
with
regulation 17 of the 2023 Regulations (general direct award provision for rail).
(3)
The Scottish Ministers may—
(a)
provide a railway passenger service designated under
section 26
[page
16:
line
35
]
themselves,
or
[
p
age
17
]
(b)
secure the provision of the service by making a direct award of a
public
service contract to one or more public sector companies in
accordance
with regulation 17 of the 2023 Regulations.
(4)
The Welsh Ministers may—
[page
17:
line
5
]
(a)
provide a railway passenger service designated under
section 27
themselves,
or
(b)
secure the provision of the service by making a direct award of a
public
service contract to one or more public sector companies in
accordance
with regulation 17 of the 2023 Regulations.
[page
17:
line
10
]
(5)
Where a public service contract is awarded under this section to a GBR
company,
sections
7
to
10
,
13
and
16
to
18
have effect in relation to the exercise
by
the company of its functions of providing railway passenger services under
the
contract as they have effect in relation to the exercise by Great British
Railways
of its statutory functions.
[page
17:
line
15
]
(6)
For the purposes of
this section
—
(a)
the Scottish Ministers and the Welsh Ministers have power—
(i)
to provide network services, station services and light
maintenance
services, and
(ii)
to store goods or consign them from a place to which they
[page
17:
line
20
]
have
been carried by rail,
(b)
the Scottish Ministers have power to provide Scotland-only services
and
cross-border services, and
(c)
the Welsh Ministers have power to provide Wales-only services and
Welsh
components of Welsh services.
[page
17:
line
25
]
(7)
An obligation to provide, or to secure the provision of, a service under this
section
does not give rise to any form of duty or liability enforceable by civil
proceedings
for breach of statutory duty.
32
Contracts awarded under
section 31
: supplementary
(1)
A public service contract awarded under
section 31
may include provision
[page
17:
line
30
]
requiring
the person or persons to whom the contract is awarded to operate,
or
secure the operation of, any additional railway asset.
(2)
Subject to any requirements imposed by or under this Act, the Railways Act
1993
or the 2023 Regulations, the contract may contain any such provisions
as
the contracting authority thinks fit.
[page
17:
line
35
]
(3)
Regulation 22 of the 2023 Regulations (pre-award publication) does not apply
in
relation to an award of a public service contract under section
31
.
(4)
In this section—
“
additional
railway asset”
means any network, station or light
maintenance
depot, and a reference to an additional railway asset
[page
17:
line
40
]
includes
a reference to any part of an additional railway asset;
“
contracting
authority”
—
[
p
age
18
]
(a)
in the case of a public service contract awarded by the Secretary
of
State, means the Secretary of State;
(b)
in the case of a public service contract awarded by the Scottish
Ministers,
means the Scottish Ministers;
[page
18:
line
5
]
(c)
in the case of a public service contract awarded by the Welsh
Ministers,
means the Welsh Ministers.
Fares
33
Fares
(1)
A power to give a direction under section
7
or
8
may be exercised to give a direction
[page
18:
line
10
]
to
Great British Railways as to the general level and structure of fares for travel
on
railway
passenger services designated under section
25
or
26
by the giver of the
direction.
(2)
A power to give guidance under
section 9
or
10
may be exercised to give guidance
as
to the general level and structure of fares for travel on railway passenger services
[page
18:
line
15
]
designated
under section
25
or
26
by the giver of the guidance.
(3)
A public service contract awarded under
section 31
may include provision as to the
general
level and structure of fares for travel on the railway passenger services to
which
the contract relates.
34
Discount fare schemes
[page
18:
line
20
]
(1)
Great British Railways must provide a scheme enabling persons who are young,
elderly
or disabled to travel at discounted fares on railway passenger services provided
by
participants in the scheme.
(2)
Great British Railways may provide other schemes enabling travel at discounted fares
on
railway passenger services provided by participants in the schemes.
[page
18:
line
25
]
(3)
A scheme under
this section
may make the availability of discounted fares
subject
to compliance with any conditions imposed by or under the scheme.
(4)
The Scottish Ministers must make arrangements, in relation to railway
passenger
services provided under section
31
(3)
(a)
, enabling persons who are
young,
elderly or disabled to travel at discounted fares on the services.
[page
18:
line
30
]
(5)
The Welsh Ministers must make arrangements, in relation to railway passenger
services
provided under section
31
(4)
(a)
, enabling persons who are young,
elderly
or disabled to travel at discounted fares on the services.
(6)
A public service contract awarded under
section 31
—
(a)
must require the person to whom the contract is awarded to make
[page
18:
line
35
]
arrangements
enabling persons who are young, elderly or disabled to travel
at
discounted fares on the railway passenger services to which the contract
relates;
[
p
age
19
]
(b)
may specify the arrangements to be made, including by specifying that the
person
to whom the contract is awarded must participate in a scheme provided
by
Great British Railways under
subsection (1)
;
(c)
may include other provision about enabling persons who are young, elderly
[page
19:
line
5
]
or
disabled to travel at discounted fares on the services.
(7)
Subsection (6)
does not preclude a public service contract awarded under
section
31
from including other provision enabling travel at discounted fares
on
the railway passenger services to which the contract relates.
(8)
In
this section
“discounted fare”, in relation to a railway passenger service,
[page
19:
line
10
]
means
a lower fare than the standard fare payable for travel on the service.
Interpretation
35
Interpretation of
Chapter 1
of
Part 2
In
this Chapter—
“
the
2023 Regulations”
means the Public Service Obligations in Transport
[page
19:
line
15
]
Regulations
2023 (S.I. 2023/1369);
“
direct
award”
has the same meaning as in the 2023 Regulations (see
regulation
2(1));
“
public
sector company”
means—
(a)
Great British Railways,
[page
19:
line
20
]
(b)
a GBR company,
(c)
a company that is wholly owned by the Welsh Ministers or
the
Scottish Ministers,
(d)
a company that is jointly owned by the Secretary of State and
the
Welsh Ministers, or
[page
19:
line
25
]
(e)
a company that is jointly owned by the Secretary of State and
the
Scottish Ministers;
“
public
service contract”
has the same meaning as in the 2023 Regulations
(see
regulation 2(1)).
Chapter
2
[page
19:
line
30
]
The
Passengers’ Council
General
36
General duties of the Council
When
exercising its functions relating to railways and railway services, the
Passengers’
Council—
[page
19:
line
35
]
(a)
must have particular regard to the interests and needs of disabled
persons,
and
[
p
age
20
]
(b)
must take into account any costs that will need to be met from public
funds,
and the need to make efficient use of those funds.
37
Keeping matters under review and collecting information
(1)
The Passengers’ Council must, so far as it appears expedient—
[page
20:
line
5
]
(a)
keep under review matters affecting the interests of the public in relation to
railway
passenger services and station services,
(b)
make representations to, and consult, such persons as they think appropriate
about
those matters, and
(c)
co-operate with other bodies representing the interests of users of public
[page
20:
line
10
]
passenger
transport services.
(2)
The Passengers’ Council may, with a view to facilitating the exercise of its functions
relating
to railways and railway services, collect information with respect to matters
affecting
the interests of the public in relation to railway passenger services and
station
services.
[page
20:
line
15
]
38
Exercise of functions under section
37
(1)
The Passengers’ Council and any other public body may enter into an
agreement
for that other body to be responsible, in accordance with the
agreement,
for—
(a)
determining what is expedient for the purposes of
subsection (1)
of
[page
20:
line
20
]
section
37
in relation to an area specified in the agreement, and
(b)
otherwise performing the Council’s functions under that subsection
in
relation to that area.
(2)
While an agreement under this section is in force—
(a)
the functions of the Passengers’ Council under
section 37
are treated,
[page
20:
line
25
]
in
relation to the area specified in the agreement, as falling on the
other
party to it instead of on the Council, but
(b)
the Council is not to be prevented from doing anything mentioned in
that
section in relation to that area.
(3)
An agreement under this section—
[page
20:
line
30
]
(a)
may be entered into on such terms and conditions as the parties to it
may
agree, and
(b)
may contain provision for determining for the purposes of this section
the
circumstances in which things done under or for the purposes of
section
37
are to be treated as done in relation to the area specified in
[page
20:
line
35
]
the
agreement.
(4)
The consent of the Secretary of State is required before the Passengers’ Council
and
another public body may enter into, vary or terminate an agreement
under
this section.
(5)
In this section “public body” means any authority or other body on which
[page
20:
line
40
]
functions
are conferred by or under—
[
p
age
21
]
(a)
an Act,
(b)
an Act of the Scottish Parliament, or
(c)
an Act or Measure of Senedd Cymru.
Investigations
[page
21:
line
5
]
39
Investigations
(1)
The Passengers’ Council must investigate any matter relating to the provision of
railway
passenger services or station services, if—
(a)
the matter is the subject of a representation made to the Council by a user
or
potential user of railway passenger services,
[page
21:
line
10
]
(b)
the matter is the subject of a representation made to the Council by an
organisation
representative of users or potential users of railway passenger
services,
(c)
the matter is referred to the Council for investigation by the Secretary of
State,
the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh Ministers or the ORR,
[page
21:
line
15
]
(d)
the matter relates to an alleged infringement of Regulation (EC) No.
1371/2007
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23rd October
2007
on rail passengers’ rights and obligations, or
(e)
it appears to the Council that the matter is one that the Council ought to
investigate.
[page
21:
line
20
]
(2)
The Passengers’ Council is not required to investigate a matter in a case
falling
within
subsection (1)
(a)
or
(b)
if the matter appears to the Council to
be
frivolous or vexatious.
(3)
If any matter falling within
subsection (1)
(a)
or
(b)
appears to the Passengers’
Council
to relate only to—
[page
21:
line
25
]
(a)
the provision of railway passenger services wholly within the London
railway
area (within the meaning of section 252A of the Greater
London
Authority Act 1999), or
(b)
the provision of station services within that area,
the
Council must refer the matter to the London Transport Users’ Committee
[page
21:
line
30
]
instead
of investigating the matter itself.
40
Power to obtain information
(1)
If the Passengers’ Council is carrying out an investigation under
section 39
,
it may request a person who provides or operates railway passenger services
or
station services to provide any information which the Council considers
[page
21:
line
35
]
necessary
for the purpose of carrying out the investigation.
(2)
The person must provide the information within a reasonable period specified
by
the Passengers’ Council unless—
(a)
the person does not have the information and cannot reasonably obtain
it,
or
[
p
age
22
]
(b)
the provision of the information would impose an unreasonable burden
on
the person.
(3)
Before specifying a period for the purposes of
subsection (2)
, the Passengers’
Council
must consult the person who is to be required to provide the
[page
22:
line
5
]
information
about the period that should be specified.
(4)
A person who relies on
paragraph (a)
or
(b)
of
subsection (2)
must notify the
Passengers’
Council in writing of that fact, stating the reason why the
paragraph
in question applies.
(5)
If the Passengers’ Council has requested information under this section and
[page
22:
line
10
]
considers
that it has not received a satisfactory response to that request—
(a)
the Council may refer the matter to the ORR, and
(b)
the ORR may take such action (if any) as it thinks appropriate.
41
Protection of confidential information
(1)
This section applies to any information provided to the Passengers’ Council
[page
22:
line
15
]
pursuant
to
section 40
(2)
if—
(a)
the person who provided the information has requested that the
information
be held in confidence, and
(b)
a person would not be entitled to the information in response to a
request
made in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
[page
22:
line
20
]
by
virtue of the exemptions in section 41 or 43 of that Act.
(2)
Information to which this section applies must not—
(a)
be included in any investigation report published under
section 43
,
(b)
be published under
section 50
, or
(c)
be disclosed by the Passengers’ Council to any other person.
[page
22:
line
25
]
(3)
Nothing in this section affects—
(a)
any power of the Passengers’ Council to disclose confidential
information
to the Secretary of State or the ORR in the course of
representations
or a referral made under
section 42
, or
(b)
any obligation of the Council to disclose information in order to comply
[page
22:
line
30
]
with
an order of a court or tribunal.
42
Representations and referrals
(1)
Having investigated a matter under
section 39
—
(a)
the Passengers’ Council may make representations to such persons as
it
thinks appropriate for the purpose of achieving a satisfactory
[page
22:
line
35
]
resolution
of the matter, and
(b)
where the Council has reason to believe—
(i)
that the holder of a licence is contravening, or likely to
contravene,
any condition of the licence, or
(ii)
that the holder of a railway undertaking licence which
[page
22:
line
40
]
authorises
the carriage of passengers by railway is contravening,
[
p
age
23
]
or
likely to contravene, any condition of the licence or of a
SNRP
issued to the holder of the licence pursuant to the
Railway
(Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2005
(S.I.
2005/3050),
[page
23:
line
5
]
it
must refer the contravention or likely contravention to the ORR and
inform
the Secretary of State that it has done so.
(2)
But
subsection (1)
(b)
does not require the Passengers’ Council to refer a
contravention
or likely contravention to the ORR if the Council exercises its
power
under
section 47
to require the preparation of a plan in relation to the
[page
23:
line
10
]
contravention
or likely contravention.
(3)
Where a contravention or likely contravention is referred to the ORR under
this
section, the ORR must—
(a)
take such action (if any) as it thinks appropriate for the purpose of
remedying
or preventing the contravention, and
[page
23:
line
15
]
(b)
inform the Passengers’ Council and the Secretary of State of—
(i)
any action it has taken, or
(ii)
if it has decided not to take action, of that decision and the
reasons
for it.
43
Reports
[page
23:
line
20
]
(1)
Where the Passengers’ Council has investigated a matter under
section 39
it
may
prepare a report of its findings.
(2)
The Passengers’ Council may send a copy of the report to one or more of the
following—
(a)
the Secretary of State;
[page
23:
line
25
]
(b)
the Welsh Ministers;
(c)
the Scottish Ministers;
(d)
Great British Railways;
(e)
the ORR;
(f)
if the matter investigated relates to the London railway area (within
[page
23:
line
30
]
the
meaning of section 252A of the Greater London Authority Act
1999),
the London Transport Users’ Committee;
(g)
any other person the Council thinks fit.
(3)
The Passengers’ Council may publish the report.
(4)
Where the report was prepared following an investigation carried out as a
[page
23:
line
35
]
result
of a referral under
section 39
(1)
(c)
by the Secretary of State, the Scottish
Ministers
or the Welsh Ministers (“the referring authority”), the Passengers’
Council
must obtain the referring authority’s consent before—
(a)
exercising its power under
subsection (2)
to send a copy of the report
to
a person other than the referring authority;
[page
23:
line
40
]
(b)
exercising its power under
subsection (3)
to publish the report.
[
p
age
24
]
(5)
Where the report was prepared following an investigation carried out as a
result
of a referral under
section 39
(1)
(c)
by the ORR, the Passengers’ Council
must
inform the ORR before exercising its power under
subsection (3)
to
publish
the report.
[page
24:
line
5
]
Complaints
and dispute resolution
44
Complaints
The
Passengers’ Council is designated as a body to which complaints may be made
about
an alleged infringement of Regulation (EC) No. 1371/2007 of the European
Parliament
and of the Council of 23rd October 2007 on rail passengers’ rights and
[page
24:
line
10
]
obligations
in relation to—
(a)
the provision of railway passenger services, or
(b)
the provision of station services.
45
Dispute resolution
The
Passengers’ Council must establish and maintain a scheme under which an
[page
24:
line
15
]
impartial
person is available to resolve disputes between—
(a)
users or potential users of railway passenger services or station services, and
(b)
providers of those services.
Standards
and improvement plans
46
Standards
[page
24:
line
20
]
(1)
The Passengers’ Council may set standards to be complied with—
(a)
by persons providing railway passenger services and station services under
a
licence, and
(b)
by persons providing railway passenger services under a railway undertaking
licence
which authorises the carriage of passengers by railway.
[page
24:
line
25
]
(2)
The matters that may be covered by the standards include—
(a)
access to railway passenger services and station services for disabled
persons
and other persons who require assistance,
(b)
the information to be provided to users and potential users of railway
passenger
services to enable them to plan travel, and to rearrange it
[page
24:
line
30
]
appropriately
in the event of disruption to the services,
(c)
the process for paying compensation to users of railway passenger
services
in the event of disruption to the services, and
(d)
how complaints about railway passenger services are to be dealt with.
(3)
The Passengers’ Council must monitor compliance with standards set under
[page
24:
line
35
]
this
section.
(4)
The Passengers’ Council may vary or revoke standards set under this section.
[
p
age
25
]
(5)
The consent of the Secretary of State and the ORR is required before the
Passengers’
Council sets, varies or revokes standards under this section.
(6)
The Passengers’ Council must publish—
(a)
standards set under this section, and
[page
25:
line
5
]
(b)
any variation or revocation of such standards.
47
Improvement plans
(1)
If, in the course of carrying out an investigation under
section 39
, or
monitoring
compliance with standards set under
section 46
, the Passengers’
Council
has reason to believe that—
[page
25:
line
10
]
(a)
a person providing railway passenger services or station services under
a
licence is contravening, or likely to contravene any condition of the
licence,
or
(b)
a person providing railway passenger services under a railway
undertaking
licence which authorises the carriage of passengers by
[page
25:
line
15
]
railway
is contravening, or likely to contravene, any condition of the
licence
or of a SNRP issued to the holder of the licence pursuant to
the
Railway (Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2005
(S.I.
2005/3050),
the
Council may require the person to prepare a plan setting out steps the
[page
25:
line
20
]
person
will take to remedy the contravention, or to avoid it taking place or
being
repeated.
(2)
If the person fails to take the steps set out in the plan, or fails to prepare a
plan
within a reasonable time, the Passengers’ Council must refer the matter
to
the ORR and inform the Secretary of State that it has done so.
[page
25:
line
25
]
(3)
Where a matter is referred to the ORR under this section, the ORR must—
(a)
take such action (if any) as it thinks appropriate for the purpose of
remedying
the contravention, or avoiding it taking place or being
repeated,
and
(b)
inform the Passengers’ Council and the Secretary of State of—
[page
25:
line
30
]
(i)
any action it has taken, or
(ii)
if it has decided not to take action, of that decision and the
reasons
for it.
Other
functions
48
Advice about railway passenger services and station services
[page
25:
line
35
]
(1)
The Passengers’ Council must consider any matter affecting the interests of the public
in
relation to railway passenger services or station services—
(a)
that is referred to it by—
(i)
the Secretary of State,
(ii)
the Scottish Ministers,
[
p
age
26
]
(iii)
the Welsh Ministers,
(iv)
a mayoral strategic authority,
(v)
the ORR,
(vi)
Great British Railways,
[page
26:
line
5
]
(vii)
a passenger service operator, or
(viii)
the operator of a station, or
(b)
that the Council considers it appropriate to consider without such a reference.
(2)
On considering a matter under this section the Passengers’ Council must give such
advice
to such persons as it considers appropriate.
[page
26:
line
10
]
49
Consultation about railway passenger services and station services
(1)
Great British Railways must consult the Passengers’ Council when—
(a)
Great British Railways is developing or changing its policies or procedures
relating
to the matters mentioned in
subsection (2)
, and
(b)
it appears to Great British Railways that the development or change will
[page
26:
line
15
]
significantly
affect the interests of the public in relation to railway passenger
services
or station services.
(2)
Those matters are—
(a)
the rights of users and potential users of railway passenger services and
station
services including, in particular, disabled persons,
[page
26:
line
20
]
(b)
how disruption to railway passenger services is to be dealt with,
(c)
the compensation to be paid to users of railway passenger services in the
event
of such disruption,
(d)
the information to be provided to users and potential users of railway
passenger
services,
[page
26:
line
25
]
(e)
the determination of fares payable for travel on railway passenger services,
(f)
the sale of tickets for travel on railway passenger services, and
(g)
any other matter affecting users and potential users of railway passenger
services
and station services.
50
Publication of information and advice
[page
26:
line
30
]
(1)
The Passengers’ Council may arrange for the publication, in such form and manner
as
it considers appropriate, of such information and advice as may appear to it
expedient
to give to users or potential users of railway passenger services and station
services.
(2)
In arranging for the publication of any such information or advice the
[page
26:
line
35
]
Passengers’
Council must have regard to the need for excluding, so far as is
practicable—
(a)
any matter which relates to the affairs of an individual, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of the
Council,
seriously and prejudicially affect the interests of that
[page
26:
line
40
]
individual,
and
[
p
age
27
]
(b)
any matter which relates specifically to the affairs of a particular body
of
persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, where publication of
that
matter would or might, in the opinion of the Council, seriously
and
prejudicially affect the interests of that body.
[page
27:
line
5
]
Miscellaneous
51
Power to make exclusions
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations—
(a)
exclude services from one or more of the duties imposed by sections
37
to
43
,
45
and
48
;
[page
27:
line
10
]
(b)
provide that one or more of those duties applies to services of a
particular
class or description, particular services or services provided
by
a particular person only to such extent as is specified in the
regulations,
or
(c)
provide that one or more of those duties applies with specified
[page
27:
line
15
]
modifications
in the case of services of a particular class or description,
particular
services or services provided by a particular person.
(2)
Before making regulations under this section, the Secretary of State must
consult
the Passengers’ Council and the London Transport Users’ Committee.
(3)
The power to make exclusions by regulations under this section includes—
[page
27:
line
20
]
(a)
power to exclude services of a particular class or description, particular
services
or services provided by a particular person, and
(b)
power to provide that services are excluded subject to compliance
with
specified conditions.
(4)
Regulations under this section may not revoke an exclusion except—
[page
27:
line
25
]
(a)
for breach of a condition, or
(b)
in accordance with the regulations that made it.
52
Interpretation of
Chapter 2
of
Part 2
(1)
In this Chapter —
“
disabled
person”
means a person who is a disabled person for the
[page
27:
line
30
]
purposes
of the Equality Act 2010 (see section 6(2) and (4) of, and
Schedule
28 to, that Act);
“
railway
undertaking licence”
and “SNRP” have the same meaning as
in
the Railway (Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2005
(S.I.
2005/3050) (see regulation 2(1)).
[page
27:
line
35
]
(2)
In this Chapter, any reference to railway passenger services includes a
reference
to bus substitution services required to be provided in place of any
such
services.
[
p
age
28
]
Chapter
3
The
London Transport Users’ Committee
53
General duties of the LTUC
After
section 252 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 insert—
“
[page
28:
line
5
]
252ZA
General railways duties of Committee
(1)
When exercising its functions relating to railways and railway services,
the
Committee—
(a)
must have particular regard to the interests and needs of
disabled
persons, and
[page
28:
line
10
]
(b)
must take into account any costs that will need to be met from
public
funds, and the need to make efficient use of those funds.
(2)
In this section “disabled person” means a person who is a disabled
person
for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010 (see section 6(2) and
(4)
of, and Schedule 28 to, that Act).
”
[page
28:
line
15
]
54
Collection of information by the LTUC
(1)
Section 252A of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (committee to keep
railways
matters under review) is amended as follows.
(2)
After subsection (1) insert—
“
(1A)
The Committee may, with a view to facilitating its functions under this
[page
28:
line
20
]
section
and sections 252B to
252DB
, collect information with respect to
matters
affecting the interests of the public in relation to—
(a)
railway passenger services provided wholly or partly within the
London
railway area, and
(b)
station services provided within that area.
”
[page
28:
line
25
]
(3)
In the heading, after “review” insert “and collect information”.
55
Investigations by the LTUC
(1)
The Greater London Authority Act 1999 is amended as follows.
(2)
In section 252B (references to Committee in relation to railways), in subsection
(1)—
[page
28:
line
30
]
(a)
after paragraph (a) insert—
“
(aa)
it is the subject of a representation made to the
Committee
by an organisation representative of users
or
potential users of railway passenger services;
”
,
(b)
omit the “or” at the end of paragraph (b), and
[
p
age
29
]
(c)
after that paragraph insert—
“
(ba)
it relates to an alleged infringement of Regulation (EC)
No.
1371/2007 of the European Parliament and of the
Council
of 23rd October 2007 on rail passengers’ rights
[page
29:
line
5
]
and
obligations, or
”
.
(3)
In subsection (2) of that section, omit the words from “in a case” to the end
of
the subsection.
(4)
In subsection (5) of that section, for “subsection (1)(a)” substitute “subsection
(1)(a)
or
(aa)
”.
[page
29:
line
10
]
(5)
After that section insert—
“
252BA
Power to obtain information
(1)
If the Committee is carrying out an investigation under section 252B,
it
may request a person who provides or operates railway passenger
services
or station services to provide any information which the
[page
29:
line
15
]
Committee
considers necessary for the purpose of carrying out the
investigation.
(2)
The person must provide the information within a reasonable period
specified
by the Committee unless—
(a)
the person does not have the information and cannot reasonably
[page
29:
line
20
]
obtain
it, or
(b)
the provision of the information would impose an unreasonable
burden
on the person.
(3)
Before specifying a period for the purposes of
subsection (2)
, the
Committee
must consult the person who is to be required to provide
[page
29:
line
25
]
the
information about the period that should be specified.
(4)
A person who relies on
paragraph (a)
or
(b)
of
subsection (2)
must
notify
the Committee in writing of that fact, stating the reason why
the
paragraph in question applies.
(5)
If the Committee has requested information under this section and
[page
29:
line
30
]
considers
that it has not received a satisfactory response to that
request—
(a)
the Committee may refer the matter to the Office of Rail and
Road,
and
(b)
the Office of Rail and Road may take such action (if any) as it
[page
29:
line
35
]
thinks
appropriate.
(6)
Subsection (2) of section 252A applies for the purposes of this section
as
it applies for the purposes of that section.
[
p
age
30
]
252BB
Protection of confidential information
(1)
This section applies to any information provided to the Committee
pursuant
to
section 252BA
(2)
if—
(a)
the person who provided the information has requested that
[page
30:
line
5
]
the
information be held in confidence, and
(b)
a person would not be entitled to the information in response
to
a request made in accordance with the Freedom of
Information
Act 2000 by virtue of the exemptions in section 41
or
43 of that Act.
[page
30:
line
10
]
(2)
Information to which this section applies must not—
(a)
be included in any investigation report published under section
252D,
(b)
be published under
section 252DB
, or
(c)
be disclosed by the Committee to any other person.
[page
30:
line
15
]
(3)
Nothing in this section affects—
(a)
any power of the Committee to disclose confidential information
to
the Secretary of State or the Office of Rail and Road in the
course
of representations or a referral made under
section 252C
,
or
[page
30:
line
20
]
(b)
any obligation of the Committee to disclose information in
order
to comply with an order of a court or tribunal.
”
(6)
For section 252C substitute—
“
252C
Action on investigation under section 252B
(1)
Having investigated a matter under section 252B—
[page
30:
line
25
]
(a)
the Committee may make representations to such persons as
it
thinks appropriate for the purpose of achieving a satisfactory
resolution
of the matter, and
(b)
where the Committee has reason to believe—
(i)
that the holder of a licence under Part 1 of the Railways
[page
30:
line
30
]
Act
1993 is contravening, or likely to contravene, any
condition
of the licence, or
(ii)
that the holder of a railway undertaking licence which
authorises
the carriage of passengers by railway is
contravening,
or likely to contravene, any condition of
[page
30:
line
35
]
the
licence or of a SNRP issued to the holder of the
licence
pursuant to the Railway (Licensing of Railway
Undertakings)
Regulations 2005 (S.I. 2005/3050),
it
must refer the contravention or likely contravention to the
Office
of Rail and Road and inform the Secretary of State that
[page
30:
line
40
]
it
has done so.
(2)
Where a contravention or likely contravention is referred to the Office
of
Rail and Road under this section, the Office of Rail and Road must—
[
p
age
31
]
(a)
take such action (if any) as it thinks appropriate for the purpose
of
remedying or preventing the contravention, and
(b)
inform the Committee and the Secretary of State of—
(i)
any action it has taken, or
[page
31:
line
5
]
(ii)
if it has decided not to take action, of that decision and
of
the reasons for it.
(3)
In this section “railway undertaking licence” and “SNRP” have the
same
meaning as in the Railway (Licensing of Railway Undertakings)
Regulations
2005 (S.I. 2005/3050) (see regulation 2(1)).
”
[page
31:
line
10
]
(7)
For section 252D substitute—
“
252D
Reports on investigation
(1)
Where the Committee has investigated a matter under section 252B it
may
prepare a report of its findings.
(2)
The Committee may send the report to one or more of the following—
[page
31:
line
15
]
(a)
the Secretary of State;
(b)
Great British Railways;
(c)
the Office of Rail and Road;
(d)
the Passengers’ Council;
(e)
any other person the Committee thinks fit.
[page
31:
line
20
]
(3)
The Committee may publish the report.
(4)
Where the report was prepared following an investigation carried out
as
a result of a referral under section 252B(1)(b) by the Secretary of
State,
the Committee must obtain the Secretary of State’s consent
before—
[page
31:
line
25
]
(a)
exercising its power under
subsection (2)
to send a copy of the
report
to a person other than the Secretary of State;
(b)
exercising its power under
subsection (3)
to publish the report.
(5)
Where the report was prepared following an investigation carried out
as
a result of a referral under section 252B(1)(b) by the Office of Rail
[page
31:
line
30
]
and
Road, the Passengers’ Council must inform the ORR before
exercising
its power under
subsection (3)
to publish the report.
”
56
Complaints to the LTUC
After
section 252D of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (substituted by
section
55
(7)
of this Act) insert—
“
[page
31:
line
35
]
252DA
Complaints
(1)
The Committee is designated as a body to which complaints may be made
about
an alleged infringement of Regulation (EC) No. 1371/2007 of the
European
Parliament and of the Council of 23rd October 2007 on rail
passengers’
rights and obligations in relation to—
[
p
age
32
]
(a)
railway passenger services provided wholly or partly within the
London
railway area, or
(b)
station services provided within that area.
(2)
Subsection (2) of section 252A applies for the purposes of this section
[page
32:
line
5
]
as
it applies for the purposes of that section.
”
57
Publication of information and advice by the LTUC
After
section 252DA
of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (inserted by
section
56
of this Act) insert—
“
252DB
Publication of information and advice
[page
32:
line
10
]
(1)
The Committee may arrange for the publication, in such form and manner
as
it considers appropriate, of such information and advice as may appear to
it
expedient to give to users or potential users of—
(a)
railway passenger services provided wholly or partly within the
London
railway area, and
[page
32:
line
15
]
(b)
station services provided within that area.
(2)
In arranging for the publication of any such information or advice the
Committee
must have regard to the need for excluding, so far as that
is
practicable—
(a)
any matter which relates to the affairs of an individual, where
[page
32:
line
20
]
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Committee, seriously and prejudicially affect the interests
of
that individual, and
(b)
any matter which relates specifically to the affairs of a particular
body
of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, where
[page
32:
line
25
]
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Committee, seriously and prejudicially affect the interests
of
that body.
”
58
Restrictions on disclosure of information by the LTUC
After
section 252DB
of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (inserted by
[page
32:
line
30
]
section
57
of this Act) insert—
“
252DC
Restrictions on disclosure of information
Section
145 of the Railways Act 1993 (general restrictions on disclosure
of
information) applies in relation to information obtained by the
Committee
under or by virtue of section 252A or
252BA
of this Act
[page
32:
line
35
]
as
it applies in relation to information obtained by the Passengers’
Council
under or by virtue of the Railways Act 2026.
”
[
p
age
33
]
Part
3
Miscellaneous
provisions
Chapter
1
Access
to infrastructure and services
[page
33:
line
5
]
Access
to and use of GBR infrastructure
59
Access and use policy
(1)
Great British Railways must issue one or more documents setting out its
policy
about, and procedures for, access to and the use of GBR infrastructure
for
the operation of trains.
[page
33:
line
10
]
(2)
The document or documents must—
(a)
set out the procedure for applications to Great British Railways for
access
to and the use of GBR infrastructure for the operation of trains
other
than GBR passenger services,
(b)
set out the criteria that Great British Railways intends to apply—
[page
33:
line
15
]
(i)
when making decisions on such applications, and
(ii)
when dealing with competing demands for access to and the
use
of GBR infrastructure,
(c)
set out a procedure for resolving disputes relating to the working
timetable
(see
section 61
(2)
)
,
[page
33:
line
20
]
(d)
include provision about the carrying out of work to maintain and
improve
GBR infrastructure and the effect of such work on the
operation
of trains,
(e)
include provision about the procedure for allowing access to and the
use
of GBR infrastructure by trains that cross the border between the
[page
33:
line
25
]
United
Kingdom and France, and
(f)
include provision about how disruption affecting GBR infrastructure
or
the operation of trains that use GBR infrastructure is to be dealt
with.
(3)
The document or documents may also set out the terms on which access to,
[page
33:
line
30
]
and
the use of, GBR infrastructure for the operation of trains is to be permitted.
(4)
Great British Railways may revise or replace a document issued under this
section.
(5)
Great British Railways must publish—
(a)
any document issued under this section, and
[page
33:
line
35
]
(b)
any revision or replacement of such a document.
(6)
A person aggrieved by provision contained in a document issued under this
section,
or in a revision or replacement of it, may appeal to the ORR.
[
p
age
34
]
60
Infrastructure capacity plan
(1)
Great British Railways must issue one or more documents setting out how,
in
its view, the best use can be made of GBR infrastructure for the operation
of
trains.
[page
34:
line
5
]
(2)
A document issued under this section must specify the period for which it
is
to have effect.
(3)
Great British Railways may at any time revise or replace a document issued
under
this section.
(4)
When preparing, revising or replacing the document or documents Great
[page
34:
line
10
]
British
Railways must have regard to the need to accommodate—
(a)
GBR passenger services,
(b)
other railway passenger services,
(c)
services for the carriage of goods by railway, and
(d)
the maintenance and improvement of GBR infrastructure.
[page
34:
line
15
]
(5)
Great British Railways must publish—
(a)
any document issued under this section, and
(b)
any revision or replacement of such a document.
(6)
A person aggrieved by provision contained in a document issued under this
section,
or in a revision or replacement of it, may appeal to the ORR.
[page
34:
line
20
]
61
The working timetable
(1)
Great British Railways must, at such intervals as it considers appropriate,
issue—
(a)
a timetable defining all planned train movements which will take place
on
GBR infrastructure during the period for which it is in force, or
[page
34:
line
25
]
(b)
two or more timetables which, taken together, define all such
movements.
(2)
A timetable issued under
subsection (1)
is referred to as a “working timetable”.
(3)
Great British Railways may revise a working timetable so as to—
(a)
add a train movement to the timetable,
[page
34:
line
30
]
(b)
change or remove a planned train movement,
(c)
allow for the carrying out of work to maintain or improve GBR
infrastructure,
(d)
deal with disruption affecting GBR infrastructure or the operation of
trains,
or
[page
34:
line
35
]
(e)
change the period for which the timetable is in force.
(4)
A planned train movement that is not a GBR passenger service may be
changed
or removed under
subsection (3)
(b)
only if the operator of the train
agrees.
[
p
age
35
]
(5)
A person who applies to Great British Railways for a train movement to be
added
to the working timetable under
subsection (3)
(a)
may appeal to the
ORR
against—
(a)
a decision not to add the movement to the timetable, or
[page
35:
line
5
]
(b)
any conditions subject to which the movement is added to the
timetable.
62
Preparation of working timetable
(1)
Great British Railways must take the following steps before issuing a working
timetable
under
section 61
(1)
.
[page
35:
line
10
]
(2)
Great British Railways must invite applications for the inclusion of train
movements
other than GBR passenger services in the working timetable.
(3)
The invitation is to be issued by publishing a notice, which must specify—
(a)
the period within which applications may be made, and
(b)
the information that must accompany applications.
[page
35:
line
15
]
(4)
Great British Railways must prepare a draft of the working timetable, and
when
doing so must consider applications for the inclusion of train movements
made
before the end of the period specified under
subsection (3)
(a)
.
(5)
Great British Railways must send the draft it has prepared to any person who
made
such an application, stating the period within which representations
[page
35:
line
20
]
may
be made with respect to the timetable.
(6)
Great British Railways must consider any representations made by such a
person
before the end of that period, and must make any revisions it considers
appropriate.
(7)
A person who makes an application under
subsection (2)
may appeal to the
[page
35:
line
25
]
ORR
against a decision made on the application by Great British Railways.
63
Capacity duty
(1)
This section applies to Great British Railways when exercising the following
functions—
(a)
deciding whether to permit any person to access or use GBR
[page
35:
line
30
]
infrastructure
for the operation of trains other than GBR passenger
services;
(b)
preparing a draft of a working timetable;
(c)
issuing or revising a working timetable.
(2)
Great British Railways must exercise the functions so as to ensure that it
[page
35:
line
35
]
retains
sufficient capacity over GBR infrastructure to allow for—
(a)
the operation of GBR passenger services and of railway passenger
services
that it expects will in future be GBR passenger services, and
(b)
the carrying out of work necessary to maintain and improve GBR
infrastructure.
[
p
age
36
]
64
Charging scheme
(1)
Great British Railways must make a scheme setting out the charges to be
made
by Great British Railways—
(a)
for access to and the use of GBR infrastructure for the operation of
[page
36:
line
5
]
trains,
and
(b)
in relation to trains which are planned to use GBR infrastructure but
do
not operate, or do not operate in full.
(2)
Subject as follows, the charges set out in the scheme under
subsection (1)
(a)
in
relation to the operation of a train must be set at the cost that is directly
[page
36:
line
10
]
incurred
as a result of the operation of the train.
(3)
The scheme may provide for a higher amount to be charged in particular
circumstances
provided that it does not exceed the amount that Great British
Railways
considers is the amount that an efficient operator would be able to
pay
in those circumstances.
[page
36:
line
15
]
(4)
The scheme may provide for a lower amount to be charged in circumstances
in
which Great British Railways considers that to be appropriate—
(a)
in order to encourage the use of GBR infrastructure where there is
spare
capacity,
(b)
in order to promote new services for the carriage of passengers or
[page
36:
line
20
]
goods
by railway,
(c)
in order to give effect to directions under
section 7
or
8
,
(d)
as a result of having had regard to guidance under
section 9
or
10
, or
(e)
for any other reason.
(5)
The scheme may not provide for charges to be made in relation to GBR
[page
36:
line
25
]
passenger
services, but must include sufficient information as to the costs for
the
access to and use of GBR infrastructure for the operation of those services
to
explain how the charges set out in the scheme have been calculated.
(6)
Great British Railways may at any time revise or replace a scheme made
under
this section.
[page
36:
line
30
]
(7)
Great British Railways must publish—
(a)
any scheme made under this section, and
(b)
any revision or replacement of the scheme.
(8)
A person aggrieved by provision contained in a scheme made under this
section,
or in a revision or replacement of it, may appeal to the ORR.
[page
36:
line
35
]
65
Performance scheme
(1)
Great British Railways must make a scheme which contains provision designed
to
encourage—
(a)
Great British Railways to take appropriate steps to minimise disruption
that
is caused to the operation of trains by problems affecting GBR
[page
36:
line
40
]
infrastructure,
and
[
p
age
37
]
(b)
persons who operate trains that use GBR infrastructure to take
appropriate
steps to minimise disruption to that infrastructure and to
the
operation of other trains using it.
(2)
The scheme may, in particular, include provision for Great British Railways
[page
37:
line
5
]
and
persons who operate trains that use GBR infrastructure—
(a)
to be required to pay penalties for causing disruption to the operation
of
trains,
(b)
to receive compensation for disruption caused to the operation of
trains,
and
[page
37:
line
10
]
(c)
to receive bonuses that reward better than planned performance of
trains
or GBR infrastructure.
(3)
But the scheme may not provide for penalties or compensation—
(a)
in relation to any disruption caused to the operation of a train by
another
train operated by the same person, or
[page
37:
line
15
]
(b)
to be paid by Great British Railways in relation to any disruption that
is
outside its control.
(4)
The scheme may—
(a)
require information of a description specified in the scheme to be
provided
to Great British Railways at times and in a manner so
[page
37:
line
20
]
specified,
and
(b)
provide for such persons not to be entitled to receive compensation
and
bonuses under the scheme if they fail to comply with the
requirement.
(5)
Great British Railways may at any time revise or replace a scheme made
[page
37:
line
25
]
under
this section.
(6)
Great British Railways must publish—
(a)
any scheme made under this section, and
(b)
any revision or replacement of the scheme.
(7)
A person aggrieved by provision contained in a scheme made under this
[page
37:
line
30
]
section,
or in a revision or replacement of it, may appeal to the ORR.
66
Consultation
(1)
Great British Railways must consult the ORR, the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh
Ministers
and such other persons as it considers appropriate before issuing,
revising
or replacing a document under
section 59
.
[page
37:
line
35
]
(2)
Great British Railways must consult such persons as it considers appropriate
before—
(a)
issuing, revising or replacing a document under
section 60
,
(b)
issuing a working timetable under
section 61
, and
(c)
before making, revising or replacing a scheme under
section 64
or
65
.
[
p
age
38
]
(3)
The requirements in this section in relation to issuing a document or timetable
or
making a scheme may be satisfied by consultation before this section comes
into
force (as well as by consultation after that time).
67
Appeals against access, charging and performance decisions
[page
38:
line
5
]
(1)
This section applies in relation to a decision made by Great British Railways—
(a)
as to access to or the use of GBR infrastructure for the operation of
trains,
or
(b)
under a scheme made under
section 64
or
65
.
(2)
A person aggrieved by the decision may appeal to the ORR.
[page
38:
line
10
]
68
Appeal procedure
(1)
When determining an appeal under this Chapter the ORR must apply the same
principles
as would be applied—
(a)
by the High Court on an application for judicial review, or
(b)
in Scotland, on an application to the supervisory jurisdiction of the Court
[page
38:
line
15
]
of
Session.
(2)
The ORR may—
(a)
allow the appeal in whole or in part, or
(b)
dismiss the appeal.
(3)
If the ORR allows the appeal in whole or in part it may—
[page
38:
line
20
]
(a)
in the case of an appeal under
section 59
(6)
,
60
(6)
,
64
(8)
or
65
(7)
, remit all
or
part of the provision appealed against to Great British Railways for
reconsideration,
and
(b)
in the case of an appeal under
section 61
(5)
,
62
(7)
or
67
, quash all or part
of
the decision appealed against.
[page
38:
line
25
]
(4)
If the ORR quashes all or part of a decision under
subsection (3)
(b)
it may
, in
addition—
(a)
remit all or part of the decision to Great British Railways for reconsideration,
or
(b)
substitute its own decision for the decision in question, but only if the
[page
38:
line
30
]
quashing
is on the ground that there has been an error of law and, without
the
error, there would have been only one decision which Great British
Railways
could have reached.
(5)
If the ORR remits a matter to Great British Railways for reconsideration it may give
Great
British Railways directions as to that reconsideration.
[page
38:
line
35
]
(6)
The Secretary of State may by regulations—
(a)
make provision about steps that must be taken before an appeal can be brought
under
this Chapter,
(b)
set fees and time limits for appeals under this Chapter, and
[
p
age
39
]
(c)
make provision governing the practice and procedure to be followed in the
case
of appeals under this Chapter.
(7)
Before making the regulations the Secretary of State must consult—
(a)
Great British Railways,
[page
39:
line
5
]
(b)
the ORR
(c)
the Scottish Ministers,
(d)
the Welsh Ministers, and
(e)
any other persons the Secretary of State considers appropriate to consult.
(8)
The ORR may issue a document setting out the practice and procedure to be followed
[page
39:
line
10
]
on
appeals under this Chapter, so far as not covered by regulations under
subsection
(6)
.
(9)
The ORR may revise or replace the document.
(10)
Before issuing, revising or replacing the document, the ORR must consult—
(a)
Great British Railways,
[page
39:
line
15
]
(b)
the Secretary of State,
(c)
the Scottish Ministers,
(d)
the Welsh Ministers, and
(e)
any other persons the ORR considers appropriate to consult.
(11)
The ORR must publish—
[page
39:
line
20
]
(a)
any document issued under
subsection (8)
, and
(b)
any revision or replacement of such a document.
Access
agreements and rights
69
Access agreements
(1)
The Railways Act 1993 is amended as follows.
[page
39:
line
25
]
(2)
In section 17(1) (directions requiring facility owners to enter into access
agreements),
after “a facility owner” insert “other than Great British Railways”.
(3)
In section 18 (access agreements requiring approval of ORR)—
(a)
in subsection (1), after “A facility owner” insert “other than Great
British
Railways”, and
[page
39:
line
30
]
(b)
after that subsection insert—
“
(1A)
Great British Railways may not, as a facility owner, enter into
an
access contract to which this section applies.
”
(4)
In section 19(1) (installation access contracts)—
(a)
in subsection (1), after “an installation owner” insert “other than Great
[page
39:
line
35
]
British
Railways”,
(b)
in subsection (3), after “An installation owner” insert “other than Great
British
Railways”, and
[
p
age
40
]
(c)
after that subsection insert—
“
(3A)
Great British Railways may not, as an installation owner, enter
into
an installation access contract to which subsection (3)
applies.
”
[page
40:
line
5
]
(5)
In section 22 (amendment of access agreements), after subsection (1) insert—
“
(1A)
Subsection (1) does not apply in relation to an access agreement if the
facility
owner or installation owner is Great British Railways.
”
(6)
In section 22A (directions to require amendment permitting more extensive
use),
after subsection (5) insert—
“
[page
40:
line
10
]
(5A)
No directions are to be given under this section in relation to a railway
facility
or network installation if the facility owner or installation
owner
is Great British Railways.
”
70
Access rights
(1)
The 2016 Regulations are amended as follows.
[page
40:
line
15
]
(2)
In regulation 3 (interpretation) in the definition of “infrastructure manager”,
after
“undertaking” insert “, other than Great British Railways,”.
(3)
In regulation 5 (access rights)—
(a)
in paragraph (1), for “A railway undertaking must be granted,”
substitute
“An infrastructure manager must grant to a railway
[page
40:
line
20
]
undertaking,”,
and
(b)
omit paragraph (8).
71
Operation of existing agreements and rights
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about the operation
of—
[page
40:
line
25
]
(a)
access agreements that were entered into before the date on which
this
section comes into force, and
(b)
access rights granted under the 2016 Regulations,
so
far as the agreements or rights have effect in relation to GBR infrastructure.
(2)
The regulations may, in particular, provide for—
[page
40:
line
30
]
(a)
the amendment or termination of access agreements and access rights,
(b)
the imposition and exclusion of obligations or of liability,
(c)
the resolution of disputes,
(d)
the payment of compensation, and
(e)
the consent of the Secretary of State to be required in circumstances
[page
40:
line
35
]
specified
in the regulations.
(3)
No regulations may be made under this section after the end of the period
of
15 years beginning with the day on which this Act is passed.
[
p
age
41
]
Supplementary
72
Regulations about non-GBR infrastructure, facilities and services
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about—
(a)
the management and operation of non-GBR infrastructure,
[page
41:
line
5
]
(b)
rights to operate trains between places using non-GBR infrastructure,
(c)
co-operation and co-ordination between Great British Railways, GBR
companies
and persons who manage or operate non-GBR infrastructure,
(d)
the provision and supply of facilities and services which facilitate the
operation
of trains, and
[page
41:
line
10
]
(e)
competition in the market or markets for the provision and supply of
such
facilities and services.
(2)
The regulations may, in particular—
(a)
make provision relating to non-GBR infrastructure that corresponds
or
is similar to, or consequential on, the provision relating to GBR
[page
41:
line
15
]
infrastructure
made by and under this Chapter;
(b)
permit functions of a person who manages or operates non-GBR
infrastructure
to be performed by a person who operates trains that
use
that infrastructure;
(c)
make provision about terms, conditions and charges for the use of
[page
41:
line
20
]
non-GBR
infrastructure and for the provision and supply of facilities
and
services;
(d)
make provision as to circumstances in which Great British Railways
is
to be treated as a railway undertaking for the purposes of the 2016
Regulations,
or any restatement or replacement of those regulations,
[page
41:
line
25
]
despite
any contrary provision made by this Act;
(e)
restate, or replace with such alternative provision as the Secretary of
State
considers appropriate, the 2016 regulations.
(3)
The regulations may—
(a)
include provision as to their enforcement, including by means of
[page
41:
line
30
]
criminal
offences punishable by a fine, civil sanctions (including
penalties)
or civil proceedings;
(b)
include provision for appeals in relation to anything done under or
by
virtue of the regulations;
(c)
confer functions (including discretions) on a person specified, or of a
[page
41:
line
35
]
description
specified, in the regulations;
(d)
confer power to make provision about matters arising out of or related
to
the regulations in a document issued by a person specified, or of
a
description specified, in the regulations.
(4)
The power to make regulations under this section includes power to make
[page
41:
line
40
]
consequential
provision which amends or repeals provision contained in this
or
any other Act.
[
p
age
42
]
(5)
Before making regulations under this section the Secretary of State must
consult
such persons as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.
(6)
In this section “non-GBR infrastructure” means any network, station or track
that
is not operated by or on behalf of Great British Railways.
[page
42:
line
5
]
73
Interpretation of
Chapter 1
of
Part 3
(1)
In this Chapter—
“
GBR
infrastructure”
means railway infrastructure operated by or on
behalf
of Great British Railways;
“
GBR
passenger service”
means a railway passenger service provided
[page
42:
line
10
]
by
Great British Railways or a subsidiary of Great British Railways—
(a)
under arrangements made under
section 4
, or
(b)
under a public service contract awarded under
section 31
;
“
working
timetable”
has the meaning given by
section 61
(2)
.
(2)
The Secretary of State may by regulations amend the definition of “GBR
[page
42:
line
15
]
infrastructure”.
Chapter
2
Other
provisions
The
ORR
74
Monitoring Great British Railways
[page
42:
line
20
]
(1)
The Railways Act 1993 is amended as follows.
(2)
After section 69 insert—
“
69A
Additional functionmonitoring Great British Railways
(1)
The Office of Rail and Road—
(a)
must monitor the exercise of—
[page
42:
line
25
]
(i)
Great British Railways’ statutory functions, and
(ii)
any functions under arrangements made under
section 4
of
the
Railways Act 2026, and
(b)
may carry out such investigations as it thinks appropriate for the
purpose
of monitoring the exercise of the functions.
[page
42:
line
30
]
(2)
When monitoring the exercise of Great British Railways’ statutory
functions
the Office of Rail and Road must, in particular, consider—
(a)
whether and how the activities set out in the business plans
provided
by Great British Railways to the Office of Rail and
Road
under Schedule
2
to the Railways Act 2026 are being
[page
42:
line
35
]
carried
out,
[
p
age
43
]
(b)
how the cost of carrying out those activities and the income
received
compares with the estimates set out in the plan, and
(c)
whether, and the extent to which, Great British Railways’
statutory
functions are being exercised in a way that furthers
[page
43:
line
5
]
the
railway safety purposes.
(3)
In this section—
“
railway
safety purposes”
has the same meaning as in Schedule
3
to the Railways Act 2005;
“
statutory
functions”
, in relation to Great British Railways, has
[page
43:
line
10
]
the
same meaning as in the Railways Act 2026 (see
section 3
(4)
of
that Act).
”
(3)
In section 69 (general functions), after subsection (3) insert—
“
(3A)
The Office of Rail and Road may arrange for the publication, in such
form
and in such manner as it considers appropriate, of any
[page
43:
line
15
]
information
or advice given to the Secretary of State under subsection
(3)
in connection with its function under
section 69A
(monitoring Great
British
Railways).
”
75
Miscellaneous functions of ORR
(1)
The Railways Act 1993 is amended as follows.
[page
43:
line
20
]
(2)
In section 16A (provision, development and improvement of railway facilities),
after
subsection (3) insert—
“
(3ZA)
A direction may not be given under this section to Great British
Railways.
”
(3)
In section 57A (penalties), after subsection (7) insert—
“
[page
43:
line
25
]
(8)
The Office of Rail and Road may not impose a penalty under this
section
on Great British Railways.
”
(4)
In section 69(3) (general functions of ORR), after “this Part” insert “or the
Railways
Act 2026”.
Publication
of information
[page
43:
line
30
]
76
Publication of information by ORR
(1)
The Railways Act 1993 is amended as follows.
(2)
After section 72 insert—
“
72A
Duty of Office of Rail and Road to publish information
(1)
The Office of Rail and Road must publish, in such manner and form as it
[page
43:
line
35
]
considers
appropriate, such documents and other information relating to the
matters
listed in
subsection (2)
as it considers appropriate.
[
p
age
44
]
(2)
The matters are—
(a)
licences and railway undertaking licences;
(b)
access agreements and installation access contracts;
(c)
access contracts, other than those for the use of GBR
[page
44:
line
5
]
infrastructure;
(d)
experimental passenger services;
(e)
closures;
(f)
railway administration orders and their discharge.
(3)
When publishing documents or information under this section, the
[page
44:
line
10
]
Office
of Rail and Road must have regard to the need for excluding,
so
far as practicable—
(a)
any matter which relates to the affairs of an individual, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Office of Rail and Road, seriously and prejudicially affect
[page
44:
line
15
]
the
interests of that individual, and
(b)
any matter which relates specifically to the affairs of a particular
body
of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Office of Rail and Road, seriously and prejudicially affect
[page
44:
line
20
]
the
interests of that body.
(4)
The Secretary of State may direct the Office of Rail and Road not to
publish
particular information or documents under this section if it
appears
to the Secretary of State that publication of that information
or
those documents would be against the public interest or the
[page
44:
line
25
]
commercial
interests of any person.
(5)
In this section—
“
experimental
passenger service”
has the same meaning as in
Part
4 of the Railways Act 2005 (see section 45(1));
“
GBR
infrastructure”
has the same meaning as in
Chapter 1
of
[page
44:
line
30
]
Part
2
of the Railways Act 2026 (see
section 73
(1)
).
”
(3)
In section 72 (keeping of register by ORR)—
(a)
omit subsections (1) to (4) and (7) to (11),
(b)
for the heading substitute “Duty to send access agreements to Office
of
Rail and Road”, and
[page
44:
line
35
]
(c)
for the italic heading before that section substitute “Information and
reporting
duties”.
(4)
The ORR may publish anything that, immediately before this section came into force,
was
contained in the register maintained under section 72 of the Railways Act 1993.
(5)
Section
72A
of the Railways Act 1993 does not require the ORR to publish—
[page
44:
line
40
]
(a)
any document created before the day on which this section comes into
force,
or
(b)
any information recorded, or relating to a time, before that day.
[
p
age
45
]
77
Publication of information by Secretary of State
(1)
For section 73 of the Railways Act 1993 substitute—
“
73
Duty of Secretary of State to publish information
(1)
The Secretary of State must publish, in such manner and form as the
[page
45:
line
5
]
Secretary
of State considers appropriate, such documents and other information
relating
to the matters listed in
subsection (2)
as the Secretary of State
considers
appropriate.
(2)
The matters are—
(a)
determinations made by the Secretary of State under section
[page
45:
line
10
]
34
of the Railways Act 2005;
(b)
the exercise of the Secretary of State’s powers under sections
55
and 57A of this Act.
(4)
When publishing documents or information under this section, the
Secretary
of State must have regard to the need for excluding, so far
[page
45:
line
15
]
as
practicable—
(a)
any matter which relates to the affairs of an individual, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Secretary of State, seriously and prejudicially affect the
interests
of that individual, and
[page
45:
line
20
]
(b)
any matter which relates specifically to the affairs of a particular
body
of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Secretary of State, seriously and prejudicially affect the
interests
of that body.
[page
45:
line
25
]
(5)
The Secretary of State may not publish particular information or
documents
under this section if it appears to the Secretary of State
that
publication of that information or those documents would be
against
the public interest or the commercial interests of any person.
”
(2)
The Secretary of State may publish anything that, immediately before this section
[page
45:
line
30
]
came
into force, was contained in the register maintained under section 73 of the
Railways
Act 1993.
78
Publication of information by Scottish Ministers
(1)
For section 73A of the Railways Act 1993 substitute—
“
73A
Duty of Scottish Ministers to publish information
[page
45:
line
35
]
(1)
The Scottish Ministers must publish, in such manner and form as they
consider
appropriate, such documents and other information relating
to
the matters listed in
subsection (2)
as they consider appropriate.
(2)
The matters are—
(a)
determinations made by the Scottish Ministers under section
[page
45:
line
40
]
34
of the Railways Act 2005;
[
p
age
46
]
(b)
the exercise of their powers under sections 55 and 57A of this
Act.
(3)
When publishing documents or information under this section, the
Scottish
Ministers must have regard to the need for excluding, so far
[page
46:
line
5
]
as
practicable—
(a)
any matter which relates to the affairs of an individual, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Scottish Ministers, seriously and prejudicially affect the
interests
of that individual, and
[page
46:
line
10
]
(b)
any matter which relates specifically to the affairs of a particular
body
of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Scottish Ministers, seriously and prejudicially affect the
interests
of that body.
[page
46:
line
15
]
(4)
The Scottish Ministers may not publish particular information or
documents
under this section if it appears to them that publication of
that
information or those documents would be against the public
interest
or the commercial interests of any person.
”
(2)
The Scottish Ministers may publish anything that, immediately before this
[page
46:
line
20
]
section
came into force, was contained in the register maintained under section
73A
of the Railways Act 1993.
79
Publication of information by Welsh Ministers
(1)
For section 73B of the Railways Act 1993 substitute—
“
73B
Duty of Welsh Ministers to publish information
[page
46:
line
25
]
(1)
The Welsh Ministers must publish, in such manner and form as they
consider
appropriate, such documents and other information relating
to
the matters listed in
subsection (2)
as they consider appropriate.
(2)
The matters are—
(a)
determinations made by the Welsh Ministers under section 34
[page
46:
line
30
]
of
the Railways Act 2005;
(b)
the exercise of their powers under sections 55 and 57A of this
Act.
(3)
When publishing documents or information under this section, the
Welsh
Ministers must have regard to the need for excluding, so far
[page
46:
line
35
]
as
practicable—
(a)
any matter which relates to the affairs of an individual, where
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Welsh Ministers, seriously and prejudicially affect the
interests
of that individual, and
[page
46:
line
40
]
(b)
any matter which relates specifically to the affairs of a particular
body
of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, where
[
p
age
47
]
publication
of that matter would or might, in the opinion of
the
Welsh Ministers, seriously and prejudicially affect the
interests
of that body.
(4)
The Welsh Ministers may not publish particular information or
[page
47:
line
5
]
documents
under this section if it appears to them that publication of
that
information or those documents would be against the public
interest
or the commercial interests of any person.
”
(2)
The Welsh Ministers may publish anything that, immediately before this
section
came into force, was contained in the register maintained under section
[page
47:
line
10
]
73B
of the Railways Act 1993.
Co-operation
etc
80
Duty to consult Scottish and Welsh Ministers
(1)
Great British Railways must consult the Scottish Ministers before making a
decision
within
subsection (2)
if it appears to Great British Railways that the
[page
47:
line
15
]
decision
will significantly affect the interests of Scotland’s economy or of
persons
living in, working in or visiting Scotland.
(2)
A decision is within
this subsection
if it relates to—
(a)
a cross-border service designated under
section 25
;
(b)
additions to a part of the railway network operated by Great British
[page
47:
line
20
]
Railways
which is situated in Scotland.
(3)
Great British Railways must consult the Welsh Ministers before making a
decision
within
subsection (4)
if it appears to Great British Railways that the
decision
will significantly affect the interests of Wales’ economy or of persons
living
in, working in or visiting Wales.
[page
47:
line
25
]
(4)
A decision is within
this subsection
if it relates to—
(a)
a railway passenger service designated under
section 25
which is
provided
in Wales;
(b)
additions to a part of the railway network operated by Great British
Railways
which is situated in Wales.
[page
47:
line
30
]
(5)
Subsections (1)
or
(3)
do not apply in relation to a decision where consultation
is
not reasonably practicable, in which case Great British Railways must notify
the
Scottish Ministers or the Welsh Ministers of the decision as soon as
reasonably
practicable.
81
Duty to consult mayoral combined authorities
[page
47:
line
35
]
(1)
Great British Railways must consult a mayoral combined authority or a
mayoral
combined county authority before making a decision within
subsection
(2)
if it appears to Great British Railways that the decision will significantly
affect
the interests of the economy of the authority’s area or of persons living
in,
working in or visiting the area.
[
p
age
48
]
(2)
A decision is within
this subsection
if it relates to—
(a)
a railway passenger service designated under
section 25
which is
provided
in the authority’s area;
(b)
additions to a part of the railway network operated by Great British
[page
48:
line
5
]
Railways
which is situated in the authority’s area.
(3)
The Scottish Ministers must consult a mayoral combined authority or a
mayoral
combined county authority before making a decision relating to a
railway
passenger service designated under
section 26
if—
(a)
the service is provided in the authority’s area, and
[page
48:
line
10
]
(b)
it appears to the Scottish Ministers that the decision will significantly
affect
the interests of the economy of the area or of persons living in,
working
in or visiting the area.
(4)
The Welsh Ministers must consult a mayoral combined authority or a mayoral
combined
county authority before making a decision relating to a railway
[page
48:
line
15
]
passenger
service designated under
section 27
if—
(a)
the service is provided in the authority’s area, and
(b)
it appears to the Welsh Ministers that the decision will significantly
affect
the interests of the economy of the area or of persons living in,
working
in or visiting the area.
[page
48:
line
20
]
(5)
Subsections (1)
,
(3)
or
(4)
do not apply in relation to a decision where
consultation
is not reasonably practicable, in which case Great British Railways,
the
Scottish Ministers or the Welsh Ministers must notify the authority of the
decision
as soon as reasonably practicable.
82
Duty to consult Transport for London
[page
48:
line
25
]
(1)
Great British Railways must consult Transport for London before making a
decision
within
subsection (2)
if it appears to Great British Railways that the
decision
will significantly affect the interests of Greater London’s economy
or
of persons living in, working in or visiting Greater London.
(2)
A decision is within
this subsection
if it relates to—
[page
48:
line
30
]
(a)
a railway passenger service designated under
section 25
which is
provided
in Greater London;
(b)
additions to a part of the railway network operated by Great British
Railways
which is situated in Greater London.
(3)
Subsection (1)
does not apply in relation to a decision where consultation is
[page
48:
line
35
]
not
reasonably practicable, in which case Great British Railways must notify
Transport
for London of the decision as soon as reasonably practicable.
83
Advice from relevant local government bodies
(1)
A relevant local government body must provide the Secretary of State with such
advice
as the Secretary of State may reasonably require about a matter connected
[
p
age
49
]
with
the exercise by the Secretary of State of a function in relation to railways or
railway
services.
(2)
The reference in
subsection (1)
to a function of the Secretary of State in relation
to
railways or railway services does not include a reference to any functions
[page
49:
line
5
]
of
the Secretary of State so far as they are exercisable for or in connection
with
the railway safety purposes (within the meaning given by
Schedule 3
to
the
Railways Act 2005
).
(3)
A relevant local government body must provide Great British Railways with such
advice
as Great British Railways may reasonably require about a matter connected
[page
49:
line
10
]
with
the exercise by Great British Railways of a statutory function in relation to
railways
or railway services in the body’s area.
(4)
In this section “a relevant local government body” means—
(a)
a mayoral combined authority,
(b)
a mayoral combined county authority, or
[page
49:
line
15
]
(c)
a Passenger Transport Executive for an integrated transport area.
84
Advice from Transport for London
After
section 176 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 insert—
“
176A
Duty to advise Secretary of State and GBR
(1)
Transport for London must provide the Secretary of State with such advice
[page
49:
line
20
]
as
the Secretary of State may reasonably require about a matter connected
with
the exercise by the Secretary of State of a function in relation to railways
or
railway services.
(2)
The reference in subsection
(1)
to a function of the Secretary of State
in
relation to railways or railway services does not include a reference
[page
49:
line
25
]
to
any functions of the Secretary of State so far as they are exercisable
for
or in connection with the railway safety purposes (within the
meaning
given by Schedule 3 to the Railways Act 2005).
(3)
Transport for London must provide Great British Railways with such advice
as
Great British Railways may reasonably require about a matter connected
[page
49:
line
30
]
with
the exercise by Great British Railways of a statutory function in relation
to
railways or railway services in Greater London.
”
Licensing
etc of train drivers
85
Licensing etc of train drivers
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about the licensing or
[page
49:
line
35
]
certification
of persons who drive trains used to provide railway services.
(2)
The provision that may be made by regulations under this section includes, among
other
things, provision—
[
p
age
50
]
(a)
prohibiting a person from driving a train unless the person is authorised to
do
so by a licence, or a certificate, of a description specified in the regulations;
(b)
as to who may issue licences or certificates;
(c)
as to conditions which a person must meet in order to hold a licence or a
[page
50:
line
5
]
certificate;
(d)
about the procedure for obtaining a licence or a certificate, including provision
for
the payment of fees;
(e)
about the form or content of licences or certificates;
(f)
for licences or certificates to include conditions, including conditions as to
[page
50:
line
10
]
the
making of payments to persons specified in the regulations;
(g)
about the validity of licences or certificates;
(h)
for the suspension, revocation or withdrawal of a licence or a certificate;
(i)
about appeals against a decision relating to the issuance, suspension,
revocation
or withdrawal of a licence or a certificate;
[page
50:
line
15
]
(j)
about keeping or sharing information in relation to—
(i)
licences or certificates;
(ii)
a person who holds, or has previously held, a licence or certificate.
(3)
The regulations may include provision about—
(a)
the training, skills, assessment and examination of persons who drive trains;
[page
50:
line
20
]
(b)
the steps which may be taken by the ORR in cases where it considers that a
person
who drives trains is a serious threat to the safety of the railway.
(4)
The regulations may confer power to make provision about matters arising out of or
related
to the regulations in a document issued by a person specified, or of a
description
specified, in the regulations.
[page
50:
line
25
]
(5)
Regulations under this section—
(a)
may make provision for the enforcement of a right or duty provided for in
the
regulations, including by creating criminal offences;
(b)
may not, in the case of an offence triable either way, make provision for the
offence
to be punishable, on conviction on indictment, by imprisonment for
[page
50:
line
30
]
a
period exceeding 2 years.
(6)
Before making regulations under this section the Secretary of State must consult—
(a)
such organisations appearing to the Secretary of State to be representative
of
persons who drive trains as they think fit, and
(b)
any other persons whom the Secretary of State considers appropriate to
[page
50:
line
35
]
consult.
International
interests in railway rolling stock
86
Cape Town Convention and Luxembourg Protocol
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision for giving effect
to—
[
p
age
51
]
(a)
the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment signed
at
Cape Town on 16 November 2001 (“the Cape Town Convention”),
so
far as it relates to international interests in railway rolling stock,
and
[page
51:
line
5
]
(b)
the Luxembourg Protocol to the Cape Town Convention on Matters
Specific
to Railway Rolling Stock signed in Luxembourg on 23 February
2007
(“the Luxembourg Protocol”).
(2)
Regulations under this section may, in particular—
(a)
make provision to deal with any matter arising out of or related to
[page
51:
line
10
]
the
Cape Town Convention or the Luxembourg Protocol;
(b)
make provision for enabling the enforcement of a right or duty arising
out
of the Cape Town Convention or the Luxembourg Protocol;
(c)
make provision which refers to an instrument made by the body
established
by virtue of Article 12 of the Luxembourg Protocol, as that
[page
51:
line
15
]
instrument
has effect from time to time;
(d)
make provision for conferring jurisdiction on a court or tribunal;
(e)
make provision for conferring functions on the Secretary of State or
any
other person;
(f)
make provision for imposing duties on persons to cooperate with a
[page
51:
line
20
]
person
exercising a function under the Cape Town Convention, the
Luxembourg
Protocol or the regulations;
(g)
make provision about the enforcement of judgments.
(3)
Regulations under this section may amend or repeal provision contained in
primary
legislation.
[page
51:
line
25
]
(4)
In
this section
—
“
international
interest”
has the meaning given in Article 1(o) of the Cape
Town
Convention;
“
primary
legislation”
means—
(a)
an Act,
[page
51:
line
30
]
(b)
an Act of the Scottish Parliament,
(c)
an Act or Measure of Senedd Cymru, or
(d)
Northern Ireland legislation;
“
railway
rolling stock”
has the meaning given in Article 1(2)(e) of the
Luxembourg
Protocol.
[page
51:
line
35
]
Part
4
General
87
Minor and consequential amendments
Schedule
3
contains minor and consequential amendments (including the
repeal
of some provisions which are spent).
[
p
age
52
]
88
Power of Secretary of State to make consequential provision
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision that is consequential
on
this Act.
(2)
Regulations under this section may amend or repeal provision contained in
[page
52:
line
5
]
an
Act passed—
(a)
before this Act, or
(b)
later in the same session of Parliament as this Act,
(as
well as provision made under such an Act).
89
Regulations
[page
52:
line
10
]
(1)
A power to make regulations under any provision of this Act includes power
to
make—
(a)
consequential, supplementary, incidental, transitional or saving
provision;
(b)
different provision for different purposes or areas;
[page
52:
line
15
]
(c)
the full provision to which the power extends or any less provision
(whether
by way of exception or otherwise).
(2)
Regulations made by the Secretary of State under this Act are to be made by
statutory
instrument.
(3)
A statutory instrument containing any of the following (whether alone or
[page
52:
line
20
]
with
other provision) may not be made unless a draft of the instrument has
been
laid before and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament—
(a)
regulations under
section 3
(3)
;
(b)
regulations under
section 72
;
(c)
regulations under
section 73
(2)
[page
52:
line
25
]
(d)
regulations under
section 85
;
(e)
regulations under
section 86
;
(f)
regulations under
section 88
that amend or repeal provision contained
in
an Act;
(g)
regulations under
paragraph 6
of
Schedule 2
.
[page
52:
line
30
]
(4)
Any other statutory instrument containing regulations made by the Secretary
of
State under this Act, except a statutory instrument containing regulations
under
section 92
, is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either
House
of Parliament.
(5)
If a draft of an instrument containing regulations under
section 72
or
88
[page
52:
line
35
]
would,
apart from this subsection, be treated as a hybrid instrument for the
purposes
of the standing orders of either House of Parliament, it is to proceed
in
that House as if it were not a hybrid instrument.
90
General interpretation
(1)
In this Act—
“
[
p
age
53
]
the
2016 Regulations”
means the Railways (Access, Management and
Licensing
of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/645));
“
GBR
company”
means—
(a)
a subsidiary of Great British Railways;
[page
53:
line
5
]
(b)
a company jointly owned by Great British Railways and the
Scottish
Ministers, or
(c)
a company jointly owned by Great British Railways and the
Welsh
Ministers;
“
mayoral
combined authority”
, “mayoral combined county authority”
[page
53:
line
10
]
and
“mayoral strategic authority” have the same meanings as in the
English
Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026;
“
the
ORR”
means the Office of Rail and Road;
“
railway
infrastructure”
has the meaning given by the 2016 Regulations
(see
regulation 3);
“
[page
53:
line
15
]
safety
functions”
, in relation to the ORR, means functions assigned or
transferred
to the ORR—
(a)
under Part 1 of the Railways Act 1993,
(b)
under or by virtue of the Railways Act 2005, or
(c)
under or by virtue of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act
[page
53:
line
20
]
1974,
so
far as they are being exercised for railway safety purposes (within
the
meaning of Schedule 3 to the Railways Act 2005) or for purposes
connected
with those purposes;
“
statutory
functions”
, in relation to Great British Railways, has the
[page
53:
line
25
]
meaning
given by section
3
(4)
.
(2)
An expression which is given a meaning by any provision of the Railways
Act
1993 for the purpose either of that Act or of Part 1 of it has the same
meaning
in this Act as in that Act or Part.
(3)
Subsections (4) and (5) of section 58 of the Railways Act 2005 (meaning of
[page
53:
line
30
]
“wholly
owned” and “jointly owned”) apply for the purposes of this Act as
they
apply for the purposes of that Act.
91
Extent
(1)
An amendment, repeal or revocation made by this Act has the same extent
as
the provision amended, repealed or revoked.
[page
53:
line
35
]
(2)
Subject to that—
(a)
this Act extends to England and Wales and Scotland, and
(b)
section
86
and this Part extend also to Northern Ireland.
92
Commencement
(1)
Sections
85
,
86
,
88
to
91
, this section and
section 93
come into force on the
[page
53:
line
40
]
day
on which this Act is passed.
[
p
age
54
]
(2)
The remaining provisions of this Act come into force—
(a)
for the purposes of making regulations, on the day on which this Act
is
passed;
(b)
for remaining purposes, on such day or days as the Secretary of State
[page
54:
line
5
]
may
by regulations appoint.
(3)
The Secretary of State may by regulations make transitional or saving provision
(in
addition to any such provision made by this Act) in connection with the
coming
into force of any provision of this Act.
93
Short title
[page
54:
line
10
]
This
Act may be cited as the Railways Act 2026.
[
p
age
55
]
Schedules
Schedule
1
Section
11
Licensing
of Great British Railways
1
The
Railways Act 1993
is amended in accordance with
paragraphs 2
to
8
.
[page
55:
line
5
]
2
In
section 7
(exemption from licensing requirements), after
subsection (12)
insert—
“
(12A)
A licence exemption may not be granted to Great British Railways.
”
3
For
section 8
substitute—
“
7B
Grant of licence to Great British Railways
[page
55:
line
10
]
(1)
The Secretary of State may, after consultation with the Office of Rail
and
Road and the Passengers’ Council, grant Great British Railways
a
licence under this section authorising Great British Railways to
be
the operator of the railway assets specified or described in the
licence.
[page
55:
line
15
]
(2)
A licence under this section must be in writing.
(3)
A licence under this section continues in force for such period as
may
be specified in or determined by or under it unless revoked
or
surrendered before the end of that period.
(4)
A licence under this section may not be surrendered without the
[page
55:
line
20
]
consent
of the Secretary of State.
(5)
The consultation requirements in subsection
(1)
may be satisfied by
consultation
before Schedule
1
to the Railways Act 2026 comes into
force
(as well as by consultation after that time).
8
Grant of licence to persons other than Great British Railways
[page
55:
line
25
]
(1)
The Secretary of State may, after consultation with the Office of Rail
and
Road and any consultation required by
subsection (3)
, grant a
person
other than Great British Railways a licence under this section
authorising
the person to be the operator of the railway assets
specified
or described in the licence.
[page
55:
line
30
]
(2)
The Office of Rail and Road may, after any consultation required
by
subsection (3)
, grant a person other than Great British Railways
a
licence under this section authorising the person to be the operator
of
the railway assets specified or described in the licence.
(3)
This subsection requires consultation with the Passengers’ Council
[page
55:
line
35
]
if
the licence is a passenger licence or station licence.
[
p
age
56
]
(4)
The Secretary of State or the Office of Rail and Road may grant a
person
a licence under this section only on an application by the
person
made in accordance with regulations under section
8B
.
(5)
The Office of Rail and Road may not grant a licence under this
[page
56:
line
5
]
section
unless—
(a)
the Secretary of State consents to the grant, or
(b)
the licence is granted in accordance with a general authority
given
to the Office of Rail and Road by the Secretary of State.
(6)
The terms of a general authority may include a requirement for the
[page
56:
line
10
]
Office
of Rail and Road to consult the Secretary of State, or obtain
their
approval, before granting a licence under this section; but a
failure
to comply with such a requirement in relation to the grant
of
a licence does not affect the validity of the licence.
(7)
A licence under this section must be in writing.
[page
56:
line
15
]
(8)
A licence under this section continues in force for such period as
may
be specified in or determined by or under it unless revoked
or
surrendered before the end of that period.
(9)
A licence under this section may not be surrendered without the
consent
of the Office of Rail and Road.
[page
56:
line
20
]
8A
Licencesnotification requirements
(1)
Before the Secretary of State or the Office of Rail and Road grants
a
licence to a person under section
7B
or
8
, they must publish a
notice—
(a)
stating that they propose granting a licence under that section
[page
56:
line
25
]
to
the person,
(b)
stating the reasons for proposing to do so, and
(c)
specifying a period of not less than 28 days beginning with
the
date of publication of the notice during which
representations
or objections with respect to the proposed
[page
56:
line
30
]
licence
may be made.
(2)
The notice must be published in such manner as they consider
appropriate
for bringing it to the attention of persons likely to be
affected
by the grant of the licence.
(3)
They must consider any representations or objections which are
[page
56:
line
35
]
made
before the end of the period specified in the notice and not
withdrawn.
(4)
As soon as possible after granting a licence they must send a copy—
(a)
in the case of a licence granted by the Secretary of State, to
the
Office of Rail and Road;
[page
56:
line
40
]
(b)
in the case of a licence granted by the Office of Rail and
Road,
to the Secretary of State;
[
p
age
57
]
(c)
in the case of a licence granted under
section 7B
or a
passenger
or station licence granted under
section 8
, to the
Passengers’
Council.
(5)
A requirement in subsection
(1)
to
(3)
may be satisfied, in relation
[page
57:
line
5
]
to
the first licence granted under section
7B
, by equivalent steps
taken
before Schedule
1
to the Railways Act 2026 comes into force
(as
well as by things done after that time).
8B
Licencesapplications
(1)
The Secretary of State may by regulations—
[page
57:
line
10
]
(a)
prescribe the manner in which an application for a licence
under
section
8
must be made;
(b)
require the application to be accompanied by such fee as the
Secretary
of State may prescribe;
(c)
require the application to be published in the prescribed
[page
57:
line
15
]
manner
and before the end of such period as may be notified
to
the applicant by the Secretary of State.
(2)
The regulations may provide for different application fees to be
payable
in respect of licences of different descriptions.
(3)
Before making regulations under this section the Secretary of State
[page
57:
line
20
]
must
consult the Office of Rail and Road.
(4)
Any sums received by the Secretary of State or the Office of Rail
and
Road in connection with an application for a licence must be
paid
into the Consolidated Fund.
”
4
In
section 9
(1)
(conditions of licences: general), after paragraph (b) insert—
[page
57:
line
25
]
(a)
after
paragraph (b)
insert—
“
(c)
in the case of a licence under section
7B
, provision
that
an authorisation by the licence has effect from
a
date specified in or determined under or in
accordance
with the licence.
”
;
[page
57:
line
30
]
(b)
at the end of
paragraph (a)
omit “and”.
5
After
section 9
insert—
“
9A
Conditions of Great British Railways’ licence
(1)
A licence under section
7B
may include a condition requiring Great
British
Railways to comply with provisions—
[page
57:
line
35
]
(a)
in relation to the exercise by Great British Railways of its
functions
under section
3
(1)(d) and (e) of the Railways Act
2026,
and
(b)
which are contained in a document, as updated from time
to
time, which is made by the Office of Rail and Road and
[
p
age
58
]
approved
by the Secretary of State (an “approved
document”).
(2)
An approved document may contain, in particular, provision about
Great
British Railways’ activities, and the manner in which it carries
[page
58:
line
5
]
on
those activities, relating to the sale of tickets by persons other
than
Great British Railways for travel on railway passenger services.
(3)
Where a licence under section
7B
includes a condition requiring
Great
British Railways to comply with provisions set out in an
approved
document, the Office of Rail and Road must keep the
[page
58:
line
10
]
document
under review and agree any updates to it with the
Secretary
of State.
(4)
The Office of Rail and Road must publish as soon as reasonably
practicable—
(a)
an approved document, and
[page
58:
line
15
]
(b)
where an approved document is updated under subsection
(3)
, the approved document as updated.
”
6
Before
section 12
insert—
“
11A
Modification of Great British Railways’ licence by the Secretary
of
State
[page
58:
line
20
]
(1)
The Secretary of State may, after consultation with the Office of Rail
and
Road and any consultation required by
subsection (2)
, modify
the
conditions of a licence held by Great British Railways.
(2)
This subsection requires consultation with the Passengers’ Council
if
the proposed modifications relate to functions of the Council.
[page
58:
line
25
]
(3)
Before making modifications under this section, the Secretary of
State
must give notice—
(a)
stating that the Secretary of State proposes to make the
modifications
and setting out their effect,
(b)
stating the reasons for proposing to do so, and
[page
58:
line
30
]
(c)
specifying a period of not less than 28 days from the date
of
publication of the notice during which representations or
objections
with respect to the proposed modifications may
be
made.
(4)
A notice under subsection
(3)
is given—
[page
58:
line
35
]
(a)
by publishing the notice in such manner as the Secretary of
State
considers appropriate for the purpose of bringing the
notice
to the attention of persons likely to be affected by the
making
of the modifications, and
(b)
by serving a copy of the notice on Great British Railways.
[page
58:
line
40
]
(5)
The Secretary of State must consider any representations or
objections
which are made before the end of the period specified
in
the notice and not withdrawn.
[
p
age
59
]
(6)
As soon as practicable after modifying the conditions of a licence
under
this section, the Secretary of State must send a copy of the
modifications
to the Office of Rail and Road and the Passengers’
Council.
”
[page
59:
line
5
]
7
In
section 12
(modification by agreement)—
(a)
before
subsection (2)
insert—
“
(1D)
If the licence is a passenger licence or station licence and the
proposed
modifications relate to functions of the Passengers’
Council,
the Office of Rail and Road must consult the Council
[page
59:
line
10
]
before
making the modifications.
”
, and
(b)
after
subsection (3)
insert—
“
(3A)
As soon as practicable after modifying the conditions of a
licence
under this section, the Office of Rail and Road must
send
a copy of the modifications to the Passengers’ Council.
”
[page
59:
line
15
]
8
In
section 13
(1)
(a)
(modification references to the CMA), after “licence”
insert
“under section
8
”.
9
A licence under
section 8
of the
Railways Act 1993
which is in force
immediately
before paragraph
3
of this Schedule comes into force continues
in
force for such period as may be specified in or determined by or under
[page
59:
line
20
]
the
licence unless revoked or surrendered before the end of that period.
Schedule
2
Section
12
Funding
Great British Railways
Part
1
Funding
by the Secretary of State
[page
59:
line
25
]
ORR
to set timetable governing funding process
1
—
(1)
Before the start of a funding period, the ORR must give a notice to the
persons
within
sub-paragraph (3)
specifying—
(a)
the day on or before which the Secretary of State is required to
provide
to the Welsh Ministers, the ORR and Great British Railways
[page
59:
line
30
]
a
statement under
paragraph 2
in relation to the funding period;
(b)
the day on or before which the Secretary of State is required to
provide
to the ORR and Great British Railways a statement under
paragraph
3
in relation to the funding period,
(c)
the day on or before which Great British Railways is required to
[page
59:
line
35
]
provide
to the ORR an approved business plan under
paragraph 4
,
and
(d)
the day on or before which the Secretary of State is required to
notify
the ORR and Great British Railways of the amount of financial
[
p
age
60
]
assistance
to be provided to Great British Railways under
paragraph
6
in relation to the funding period.
(2)
The notice must also set out the day on which the funding period starts.
(3)
The following persons are within
this sub-paragraph
—
[page
60:
line
5
]
(a)
the Secretary of State,
(b)
the Scottish Ministers,
(c)
the Welsh Ministers,
(d)
Great British Railways, and
(e)
the Passengers’ Council.
[page
60:
line
10
]
(4)
The ORR may at any time vary a notice under
this paragraph
to specify a
later
day on or before which a requirement referred to in
sub-paragraph
(1)
is to be met (including where a day specified in relation to the
requirement
has passed without the requirement being met).
(5)
The ORR must notify a person to whom a notice under
this paragraph
is
[page
60:
line
15
]
given
of any such variation, as soon as reasonably practicable.
(6)
A day specified for the purpose of paragraph
(b)
to
(d)
must fall after the
day
specified for the purpose of the preceding paragraph of
that
sub-paragraph
.
(7)
The ORR must consult the Secretary of State, the Scottish Ministers, the
[page
60:
line
20
]
Welsh
Ministers and Great British Railways as to the days to be specified
in
the notice.
(8)
Each day specified in a notice under
this paragraph
must fall before the
start
of the funding period to which the notice relates.
(9)
In
this Schedule
“funding period” means—
[page
60:
line
25
]
(a)
the period of five years beginning with such day as the Secretary
of
State may determine;
(b)
each subsequent period of five years.
Secretary
of State’s statement of objectives
2
—
(1)
The Secretary of State must provide the Welsh Ministers, the ORR and
[page
60:
line
30
]
Great
British Railways with a statement, in relation to a funding period,
which—
(a)
sets out the Secretary of State’s objectives for the funding period in
relation
to railways and railway services, and
(b)
specifies which of those objectives Great British Railways is capable
[page
60:
line
35
]
of
contributing to meeting.
(2)
The objectives set out under
sub-paragraph (1)
(a)
may include objectives
as
to standards to be achieved when carrying on activities in relation to
railways
and railway services.
(3)
The objectives set out under
sub-paragraph (1)
(a)
may include, in particular,
[page
60:
line
40
]
objectives
relating to—
(a)
the carriage of passengers or goods;
[
p
age
61
]
(b)
the railway network or railway assets (including objectives relating
to
the provision of the railway network or railway assets after the
end
of the funding period);
(c)
fares;
[page
61:
line
5
]
(d)
the accessibility of railway services to people with disabilities;
(e)
the protection of persons from dangers arising from the operation
of
railways.
(4)
The statement must be provided on or before the day specified by the ORR
under
paragraph 1
(1)
(a)
in relation to the statement.
[page
61:
line
10
]
(5)
The Secretary of State must publish the statement as soon as reasonably
practicable
after providing it.
(6)
The Secretary of State must consult the following persons when preparing
the
statement—
(a)
the Scottish Ministers,
[page
61:
line
15
]
(b)
the Welsh Ministers,
(c)
the ORR,
(d)
Great British Railways,
(e)
the Passengers’ Council, and
(f)
each mayoral strategic authority.
[page
61:
line
20
]
Statement
of funds available
3
—
(1)
The Secretary of State must provide the ORR and Great British Railways
with
a statement, in relation to a funding period, indicating the amount of
financial
assistance that the Secretary of State reasonably considers may be
made
available to Great British Railways by the Secretary of State (whether
[page
61:
line
25
]
under
this Act or under any other power) for the purpose of funding the
activities
of Great British Railways during the funding period.
(2)
The statement must be provided on or before the day specified by the ORR
under
paragraph 1
(1)
(b)
in relation to the statement.
(3)
The Secretary of State must publish the statement as soon as reasonably
[page
61:
line
30
]
practicable
after providing it.
(4)
When preparing a statement under this section, the Secretary of State must
have
regard to the likely costs to Great British Railways of meeting, or
contributing
to meeting, the objectives specified by the Secretary of State
under
paragraph 2
(1)
(b)
in relation to the funding period.
[page
61:
line
35
]
(5)
The Secretary of State must consult the ORR when preparing the statement.
Business
plan and approval by the Secretary of State
4
—
(1)
Great British Railways must provide the ORR with an approved business
plan,
in relation to a funding period, on or before the date specified by the
ORR
under
paragraph 1
(1)
(c)
in relation to the period.
[
p
age
62
]
(2)
In
this Schedule
“approved business plan” means a business plan which
is
approved by the Secretary of State.
(3)
The plan must set out—
(a)
the activities Great British Railways proposes are carried on during
[page
62:
line
5
]
the
funding period (whether by Great British Railways or another
GBR
company),
(b)
Great British Railways’ estimate of the costs of carrying on those
activities,
and
(c)
how Great British Railways proposes to meet those costs.
[page
62:
line
10
]
(4)
The plan must explain, in particular—
(a)
how those activities will contribute to meeting the objectives
specified
by the Secretary of State in a statement under
paragraph
2
(1)
(b)
in relation to the funding period;
(b)
whether, and if so how, those activities will contribute to meeting
[page
62:
line
15
]
any
other objectives set out in the statement.
(5)
The Secretary of State may not approve a business plan unless they have
obtained
advice from the ORR as to—
(a)
how the activities Great British Railways proposes to carry on during
the
funding period will contribute to meeting the objectives
[page
62:
line
20
]
mentioned
in
sub-paragraph (4)
, and
(b)
whether the estimated costs of carrying on those activities represent
good
value for money.
(6)
The ORR must publish a summary of the advice as soon as reasonably
practicable
after the approved business plan is published under subsection
[page
62:
line
25
]
(7)
.
(7)
Great British Railways—
(a)
must publish so much of the approved business plan as it considers
appropriate
to publish, and
(b)
must do so as soon as reasonably practicable.
[page
62:
line
30
]
(8)
When preparing a business plan for the purposes of
this paragraph
, Great
British
Railways—
(a)
must have regard to the statement provided by the Secretary of
State
under
paragraph 3
in relation to the funding period, and
(b)
must consult the Secretary of State, the ORR and the Passengers’
[page
62:
line
35
]
Council.
Keeping
the approved business plan up to date
5
—
(1)
Great British Railways must keep an approved business plan up to date.
(2)
Where Great British Railways proposes updating information in an approved
business
plan which is required to be included in the plan under
paragraph
[page
62:
line
40
]
4
(3)
, the information is to not to be taken as updated unless—
(a)
Great British Railways consults the ORR and the Passengers’ Council
about
the proposed update, and
[
p
age
63
]
(b)
the Secretary of State approves the proposed update.
(3)
Great British Railways—
(a)
must publish so much of the approved business plan as updated
as
it considers appropriate to publish, and
[page
63:
line
5
]
(b)
must do so as soon as reasonably practicable.
Secretary
of State’s power to provide financial assistance
6
—
(1)
The Secretary of State may at any time provide financial assistance to Great British
Railways
for the purpose of enabling it to carry on, or assisting it with carrying
on,
activities set out in an approved business plan.
[page
63:
line
10
]
(2)
The financial assistance may be provided only for the purpose of activities—
(a)
carried on in exercise of Great British Railways’ function under
section
3
(1)
(a)
, or
(b)
specified by the Secretary of State in regulations.
(3)
Regulations under
this paragraph
may specify activities generally, activities of a
[page
63:
line
15
]
particular
description or particular activities.
(4)
Where the activities are to be carried on by a GBR company, the Secretary of State
may
provide the assistance directly to them.
(5)
The financial assistance may be provided in any form and in particular may be
provided—
[page
63:
line
20
]
(a)
by way of grant, loan, guarantee or indemnity,
(b)
by the acquisition of any undertaking or of any assets,
(c)
pursuant to a contract, or
(d)
by incurring expenditure for the benefit of Great British Railways or a
GBR
company.
[page
63:
line
25
]
(6)
The financial assistance may be provided on such terms, and subject to such
conditions,
as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.
(7)
The power to provide financial assistance under
this paragraph
does not limit the
circumstances
in which the Secretary of State may provide financial assistance to
Great
British Railways, or a GBR company, under any other power.
[page
63:
line
30
]
Notification
of financial assistance to be provided
7
—
(1)
The Secretary of State must notify the ORR and Great British Railways, on
or
before the day specified by the ORR under
paragraph 1
(1)
(d)
in relation
to
a funding period, of—
(a)
the financial assistance to be provided under
paragraph 6
for the
[page
63:
line
35
]
purpose
of enabling Great British Railways to carry on, or assisting
it
with carrying on, activities set out in an approved business plan;
(b)
the activities for which purpose the assistance is to be provided.
(2)
The Secretary of State must publish details of the financial assistance, and
the
activities, notified under
sub-paragraph (1)
as soon as reasonably
[page
63:
line
40
]
practicable.
[
p
age
64
]
(3)
If the Secretary of State proposes to vary the financial assistance to be
provided
under
paragraph 6
, the Secretary of State must notify Great British
Railways
of the proposed variation.
(4)
The Secretary of State must notify the ORR if—
[page
64:
line
5
]
(a)
the proposed variation is to financial assistance to be provided for
the
purpose of carrying on activities in exercise of Great British
Railways’
function under
section 3
(1)
(a)
,
(b)
the proposed variation is a proposal to postpone or withdraw the
provision
of financial assistance or to reduce the amount of
[page
64:
line
10
]
assistance
to be provided, and
(c)
the Secretary of State considers that the proposed postponement,
withdrawal
or reduction is likely to have a material impact on the
ability
of Great British Railways to carry on the activities specified
in
a notification under
sub-paragraph (1)
in relation to the assistance.
[page
64:
line
15
]
(5)
If the Secretary of State decides to vary the financial assistance to be
provided
under
paragraph 6
, the Secretary of State must—
(a)
notify Great British Railways of the variation, and
(b)
publish details of the variation if the Secretary of State considers
that
the variation is likely to have a material impact on the ability
[page
64:
line
20
]
of
Great British Railways to carry on the activities specified in a
notification
under
sub-paragraph (1)
in relation to the assistance.
Part
2
Funding
by the Scottish Ministers
ORR
to set timetable: Scotland
[page
64:
line
25
]
8
—
(1)
Before the start of a funding period, the ORR must give a notice to the
persons
within
sub-paragraph (3)
specifying—
(a)
the day on or before which the Scottish Ministers are required to
provide
to the ORR and Great British Railways a statement under
paragraph
9
in relation to the funding period,
[page
64:
line
30
]
(b)
the day on or before which the Scottish Ministers are required to
provide
to the ORR and Great British Railways a statement under
paragraph
10
in relation to the funding period,
(c)
the day on or before which Great British Railways is required to
provide
to the ORR an approved Scottish business plan under
[page
64:
line
35
]
paragraph
11
, and
(d)
the day on or before which the Scottish Ministers are required to
notify
the ORR and Great British Railways of the amount of financial
assistance
to be provided to Great British Railways under
paragraph
13
in relation to the funding period.
[page
64:
line
40
]
(2)
The notice must also set out the day on which the funding period starts.
(3)
The following persons are within
this sub-paragraph
—
[
p
age
65
]
(a)
the Secretary of State,
(b)
the Scottish Ministers,
(c)
Great British Railways, and
(d)
the Passengers’ Council.
[page
65:
line
5
]
(4)
The ORR may at any time vary a notice under
this paragraph
to specify a
later
day on or before which a requirement referred to in
sub-paragraph
(1)
is to be met (including where a day specified in relation to the
requirement
has passed without the requirement being met).
(5)
The ORR must notify a person to whom a notice under this paragraph is
[page
65:
line
10
]
given
of any such variation, as soon as reasonably practicable.
(6)
A day specified for the purpose of
paragraph (b)
to
(d)
must fall after the
day
or days specified for the purpose of the preceding paragraph of
that
sub-paragraph
.
(7)
The ORR must consult the Secretary of State, the Scottish Ministers and
[page
65:
line
15
]
Great
British Railways as to the days to be specified in the notice.
(8)
Each day specified in a notice under
this paragraph
must fall before the
start
of the funding period to which the notice relates.
Scottish
Ministers’ statement of objectives
9
—
(1)
The Scottish Ministers must provide the ORR and Great British Railways
[page
65:
line
20
]
with
a statement, in relation to a funding period, which—
(a)
sets out the Scottish Ministers’ objectives for the funding period in
relation
to Scottish railway activities, and
(b)
specifies which of those objectives Great British Railways is capable
of
contributing to meeting.
[page
65:
line
25
]
(2)
The objectives set out under
sub-paragraph (1)
(a)
may include objectives
as
to standards to be achieved when carrying on Scottish railway activities.
(3)
The objectives set out under
sub-paragraph (1)
(a)
may include, in particular,
objectives
relating to—
(a)
the carriage of passengers or goods;
[page
65:
line
30
]
(b)
the railway network in Scotland or railway assets situated in
Scotland
(including objectives relating to the provision of the railway
network
or railway assets after the end of the funding period);
(c)
fares;
(d)
the accessibility of railway services to people with disabilities;
[page
65:
line
35
]
(e)
the protection of persons from dangers arising from the operation
of
railways.
(4)
The statement must be provided on or before the day specified by the ORR
under
paragraph 8
(1)
(a)
in relation to the statement.
(5)
The Scottish Ministers must publish the statement as soon as reasonably
[page
65:
line
40
]
practicable
after providing it.
[
p
age
66
]
(6)
The Scottish Ministers must consult the following persons when preparing
the
statement—
(a)
the Secretary of State,
(b)
the ORR,
[page
66:
line
5
]
(c)
Great British Railways, and
(d)
the Passengers’ Council.
Statement
of funds available: Scotland
10
—
(1)
The Scottish Ministers must provide the ORR and Great British Railways
with
a statement, in relation to a funding period, indicating the amount of
[page
66:
line
10
]
financial
assistance that the Scottish Ministers reasonably consider may be
made
available to Great British Railways by the Scottish Ministers (whether
under
this Act or any other power to provide financial assistance) for the
purpose
of funding the Scottish railway activities of Great British Railways
during
the funding period.
[page
66:
line
15
]
(2)
The statement must be provided on or before the day specified by the ORR
under
paragraph 8
(1)
(b)
in relation to the statement.
(3)
The Scottish Ministers must publish the statement as soon as reasonably
practicable
after providing it.
(4)
When preparing a statement under this section, the Scottish Ministers must
[page
66:
line
20
]
have
regard to the likely costs to Great British Railways of meeting, or
contributing
to meeting, the objectives specified by the Scottish Ministers
in
a statement under
paragraph 9
(1)
(b)
in relation to the funding period.
(5)
The Scottish Ministers must consult the ORR when preparing the statement.
Scottish
business plan and approval by the Scottish Ministers
[page
66:
line
25
]
11
—
(1)
Great British Railways must provide the ORR with an approved Scottish
business
plan, in relation to a funding period, on or before the date specified
by
the ORR under
paragraph 8
(1)
(c)
in relation to the period.
(2)
In
this Schedule
“approved Scottish business plan” means a business plan
which
is approved by the Scottish Ministers.
[page
66:
line
30
]
(3)
The plan must set out—
(a)
the Scottish railway activities Great British Railways proposes are
carried
on during the funding period (whether by Great British
Railways
or another GBR company),
(b)
Great British Railways’ estimate of the costs of carrying on those
[page
66:
line
35
]
activities,
and
(c)
how Great British Railways proposes to meet those costs.
(4)
The plan must explain, in particular—
(a)
how those activities will contribute to meeting the objectives
specified
by the Scottish Ministers in a statement under
paragraph
[page
66:
line
40
]
9
(1)
(b)
in relation to the funding period;
[
p
age
67
]
(b)
whether, and if so how, those activities will contribute to meeting
any
other objectives set out in the statement.
(5)
The Scottish Ministers may not approve a business plan unless they have
obtained
advice from the ORR as to—
[page
67:
line
5
]
(a)
how the activities Great British Railways proposes to carry on during
the
funding period will contribute to meeting the objectives
mentioned
in
sub-paragraph (4)
, and
(b)
whether the estimated costs of carrying on those activities represent
good
value for money.
[page
67:
line
10
]
(6)
The ORR must publish a summary of the advice as soon as reasonably
practicable
after the approved Scottish business plan is published under
subsection
(7)
.
(7)
Great British Railways—
(a)
must publish so much of the approved Scottish business plan as it
[page
67:
line
15
]
considers
appropriate to publish, and
(b)
must do so as soon as reasonably practicable.
(8)
When preparing a business plan for the purposes of
this paragraph
, Great
British
Railways—
(a)
must have regard to the statement provided by the Scottish Ministers
[page
67:
line
20
]
under
paragraph 10
in relation to the funding period, and
(b)
must consult the Scottish Ministers, the ORR and the Passengers’
Council.
Keeping
the approved Scottish business plan up to date
12
—
(1)
Great British Railways must keep an approved Scottish business plan up
[page
67:
line
25
]
to
date.
(2)
Where Great British Railways proposes updating information in an approved
Scottish
business plan which is required to be included in the plan under
paragraph
11
(3)
, the information is to not to be taken as updated unless—
(a)
Great British Railways consults the ORR and the Passengers’ Council
[page
67:
line
30
]
about
the proposed update, and
(b)
the Scottish Ministers approve the proposed update.
(3)
Great British Railways—
(a)
must publish so much of the approved Scottish business plan as
updated
as it considers appropriate to publish, and
[page
67:
line
35
]
(b)
must do so as soon as reasonably practicable.
Scottish
Ministers’ power to provide financial assistance
13
—
(1)
The Scottish Ministers may at any time provide financial assistance to Great
British
Railways for the purpose of enabling it to carry on, or assisting it
with
carrying on, Scottish railway activities set out in an approved Scottish
[page
67:
line
40
]
business
plan.
[
p
age
68
]
(2)
Where the activities are to be carried on by a person within
sub-paragraph
(3)
, the Scottish Ministers may provide the assistance directly to them.
(3)
The following are within
this sub-paragraph
—
(a)
a subsidiary of Great British Railways, or
[page
68:
line
5
]
(b)
a company jointly owned by Great British Railways and the Scottish
Ministers.
(4)
The financial assistance may be provided in any form and in particular
may
be provided—
(a)
by way of grant, loan, guarantee or indemnity,
[page
68:
line
10
]
(b)
by the acquisition of any undertaking or of any assets,
(c)
pursuant to a contract, or
(d)
by incurring expenditure for the benefit of Great British Railways
or
a person within
sub-paragraph (3)
.
(5)
The financial assistance may be provided on such terms, and subject to
[page
68:
line
15
]
such
conditions, as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.
(6)
The power to provide financial assistance under
this paragraph
does not
limit
the circumstances in which the Scottish Ministers may provide financial
assistance
to Great British Railways, or a person within
sub-paragraph (3)
,
under any other power.
[page
68:
line
20
]
Notification
of financial assistance to be provided
14
—
(1)
The Scottish Ministers must notify the ORR and Great British Railways, on
or
before the day specified by the ORR under
paragraph 8
(1)
(d)
in relation
to
a funding period, of—
(a)
the financial assistance to be provided under
paragraph 13
for the
[page
68:
line
25
]
purpose
of enabling Great British Railways to carry on, or assisting
it
with carrying on, Scottish railway activities set out in an approved
Scottish
business plan;
(b)
the activities for which purpose the assistance is to be provided.
(2)
The Scottish Ministers must publish details of the financial assistance, and
[page
68:
line
30
]
the
activities, notified under
sub-paragraph (1)
as soon as reasonably
practicable.
(3)
If the Scottish Ministers propose to vary the financial assistance to be
provided
under
paragraph 13
, they must notify Great British Railways of
the
proposed variation.
[page
68:
line
35
]
(4)
The Scottish Ministers must notify the ORR if—
(a)
the proposed variation is a proposal to postpone or withdraw the
provision
of financial assistance or reduce the amount of assistance
to
be provided, and
(b)
the Scottish Ministers consider that the proposed postponement,
[page
68:
line
40
]
withdrawal
or reduction is likely to have a material impact on the
ability
of Great British Railways to carry on the activities specified
in
a notification under
sub-paragraph (1)
in relation to the assistance.
[
p
age
69
]
(5)
If the Scottish Ministers decide to vary the financial assistance to be
provided
under
paragraph 13
, they must—
(a)
notify Great British Railways of the variation, and
(b)
publish details of the variation if they consider that the variation is
[page
69:
line
5
]
likely
to have a material impact on the ability of Great British
Railways
to carry on the activities specified in a notification under
sub-paragraph
(1)
in relation to the assistance.
Part
3
Subsidy
Control
[page
69:
line
10
]
Subsidy
control
15
Financial assistance given to Great British Railways or a GBR company
(whether
under this Act or any other power) is not a subsidy for the
purposes
of the
Subsidy Control Act 2022
if it is given for the primary
purpose
of enabling Great British Railways to exercise a function under
[page
69:
line
15
]
section
3
(1)
(a)
.
Part
4
Interpretation
Interpretation
16
In
this Schedule
—
“
[page
69:
line
20
]
approved
business plan”
has the meaning given by paragraph
4
(2)
;
“
approved
Scottish business plan”
has the meaning given by paragraph
11
(2)
;
“
funding
period”
has the meaning given by
paragraph 1
(9)
;
“
railway
activities”
means activities involving any of the following—
[page
69:
line
25
]
(a)
providing railway services;
(b)
making available railway facilities;
(c)
making use of such facilities;
(d)
using railway assets;
(e)
allowing others to use such assets.
“
[page
69:
line
30
]
Scottish
railway activities”
means railway activities which relate to—
(a)
passenger railway services designated by the Scottish
Ministers
under section
26
,
(b)
Scotland-only services not so designated,
(c)
railway facilities situated in Scotland, or
[page
69:
line
35
]
(d)
railway assets so situated.
[
p
age
70
]
Schedule
3
Section 83
Minor
and consequential amendments
Public
Records Act 1958
1
In
Part 2
of the Table at the end of
paragraph 3
of
Schedule 1
to the
Public
[page
70:
line
5
]
Records
Act 1958
—
(a)
omit the entry for the Rail Passengers’ Committees, and
(b)
at the appropriate place insert—
“
The
London Transport Users’ Committee.
”
Insolvency
Act 1986
[page
70:
line
10
]
2
In
Schedule 2A
to the
Insolvency Act 1986
, in
paragraph 10
(1)
(j)
, after
“section”
insert “
7B
or”.
Railways
Act 1993
3
The
Railways Act 1993
is amended as follows.
4
Omit
section 4
.
[page
70:
line
15
]
5
—
(1)
Section 9
is amended as follows.
(2)
In
subsection (1)
, omit from “having regard” to “above”.
(3)
In
subsection (3)
, after
paragraph (a)
insert—
“
(aa)
to comply with standards set by the Passengers’ Council
under
section
46
of the Railways Act 2026;
”
.
[page
70:
line
20
]
6
In section 13, for subsection (7) substitute—
“
(7)
In exercising a function for the purpose of this section, the duties
imposed
on the Office of Rail and Road by Chapter
2
of Part
1
of
the
Railways Act 2026 are to be treated as imposed on the CMA.
”
7
In section 15B, for subsection (2) substitute—
“
[page
70:
line
25
]
(2)
In exercising a function for the purpose of subsection (1), the duties
imposed
on the Office of Rail and Road by Chapter
2
of Part
1
of
the
Railways Act 2026 are to be treated as imposed on the CMA.
”
8
Omit
section 19A
.
9
Omit
sections 23
to
31
and the italic cross-heading before
section 23
.
[page
70:
line
30
]
10
Omit
section 50
.
11
Omit the italic cross-heading after
section 50
.
12
Omit
section 54
.
13
—
(1)
Section 55
is amended as follows.
(2)
In subsection (1), for “(5C)” substitute “(5B)”.
[
p
age
71
]
(3)
In
subsections (2)
and
(4)
, for “(5) to (5C) below” substitute “subsections
(5ZA)
to (5B)”.
(4)
Omit
subsections (5)
and
(5C)
.
(5)
In
subsection (5D)
—
[page
71:
line
5
]
(a)
in
paragraph (a)
, omit “(5) or”;
(b)
in
paragraph (b)
, omit “(5),”.
(6)
In
subsection (10)
—
(a)
in
paragraph (aa)
of the definition of “the appropriate authority”,
for
the words from “of—” to the end substitute “of a person under
[page
71:
line
10
]
Scottish
closure restrictions, the Scottish Ministers;”;
(b)
omit
paragraphs (ab)
to
(ad)
of that definition;
(c)
omit
paragraph (b)
of the definition of “relevant condition or
requirement”;
(d)
omit
paragraphs (b)
and
(c)
of the definition of “relevant operator”.
[page
71:
line
15
]
14
In
section 59
(6)
, omit
paragraphs (za)
,
(c)
and
(d)
.
15
—
(1)
Section 61
is amended as follows.
(2)
In
subsection (1)
, for
paragraph (a)
substitute—
“
(a)
notice of the petition has been served on the Secretary of
State,
and
”
.
[page
71:
line
20
]
(3)
In
subsection (2)
, for the words from “presented—” to “may” substitute
“presented,
the Secretary of State may”.
16
—
(1)
Section 62 is amended as follows.
(2)
In subsection (2), for
paragraph (a)
substitute—
“
(a)
notice of the application has been served on the Secretary
[page
71:
line
25
]
of
State, and
”
.
(3)
In subsection (3), for the words from “company—” to “may” substitute
“company,
the Secretary of State may”.
(4)
In
subsection (5)
, for
paragraph (a)
substitute—
“
(a)
notice of the application has been served on the Secretary
[page
71:
line
30
]
of
State, and
”
.
(5)
In
subsection (6)
, for the words from “company—” to “may” substitute
“company,
the Secretary of State may”.
(6)
In
subsection (7)
, for the words from “on—” to the end substitute “on the
Secretary
of State.”
[page
71:
line
35
]
17
—
(1)
Section 63
is amended as follows.
(2)
In
subsection (1)
omit “other than a Scottish protected railway company
or
a Welsh protected railway company”.
(3)
In
subsection (2)
omit from “and” at the end of
paragraph (a)
to the end.
[
p
age
72
]
18
Omit
section 64A
.
19
Omit section 66.
20
In
section 67
(competition functions of the ORR), after
subsection (6A)
insert—
“
[page
72:
line
5
]
(6B)
When exercising functions of the CMA by virtue of subsection (3),
the
Office of Rail and Road may have regard to any matter in respect
of
which a duty is imposed on it by
Chapter 2
of
Part 1
of the
Railways
Act 2026 if it is a matter to which the CMA could have
regard
when exercising those functions.
”
[page
72:
line
10
]
21
Omit
sections 76
and
76A
.
22
—
(1)
Section 83
(1)
is amended as follows.
(2)
Omit the entries for the following defined terms—
“the
1973 Act”
“additional
railway asset”
[page
72:
line
15
]
“appropriate
designating authority”
“appropriate
franchising authority”
“franchise
agreement”
“franchise
assets”
“franchise
operator”
[page
72:
line
20
]
“franchise
period”
“franchise
term”
“franchised
services”
“franchisee”
“Scottish
franchise agreement”
[page
72:
line
25
]
“through
ticket” and “through ticketing”
“Welsh
franchise agreement”
“Welsh
protected railway company”.
(3)
In the definition of “licence”, after “section” insert “
7B
or”.
23
—
(1)
Section 135 is amended as follows.
[page
72:
line
30
]
(2)
Omit subsections (4) and (8).
(3)
For subsection (9) substitute—
“
(9)
Nothing in this section is to be read as limiting the conditions which
may
be included in licences, whether or not with respect to free or
concessionary
travel.
”
[page
72:
line
35
]
24
—
(1)
Section 145
is amended as follows.
(2)
In
subsection (1)
(a)
, after “this Act” insert “or the Railways Act 2026”.
(3)
In subsection (2)—
[
p
age
73
]
(a)
before paragraph (a) insert—
“
(za)
for the purpose of facilitating the carrying out by
Great
British Railways of its statutory functions
(within
the meaning of the Railways Act 2026);
”
, and
[page
73:
line
5
]
(b)
in paragraph (a), for “or the Railways Act 2005” substitute “, the
Railways
Act 2005 or the Railways Act 2026”.
(4)
In
subsection (2)
, after
paragraph (gc)
insert—
“
(gd)
for the purpose of facilitating the carrying out by the
Passengers’
Council of any of its functions under the
[page
73:
line
10
]
Railways
Act 2026
;
”
.
(5)
At the end of
subsection (5)
(a)
insert “or under any provision of the
Railways
Act 2026”.
25
Omit Schedule 4A.
26
—
(1)
Paragraph 2
of
Schedule 7
is amended as follows.
[page
73:
line
15
]
(2)
In
sub-paragraph (2)
, for “appropriate national authority” substitute
“Secretary
of State”.
(3)
In
sub-paragraph (3)
, for “appropriate national authority, it” substitute
“Secretary
of State, they”.
(4)
In
sub-paragraph (4)
, for “appropriate national authority”, in each place it
[page
73:
line
20
]
occurs,
substitute “Secretary of State”.
(5)
In
sub-paragraph (5)
, for “appropriate national authority” substitute
“Secretary
of State”.
(6)
In
sub-paragraph (6)
—
(a)
for the words from the beginning to “shall” substitute “In
[page
73:
line
25
]
determining
whether and in what manner to exercise any power
conferred
by this paragraph, the Secretary of State must”;
(b)
for the subsequent reference to “appropriate national authority”
substitute
“Secretary of State”.
(7)
In
sub-paragraph (7)
, for “the appropriate national authority”—
[page
73:
line
30
]
(a)
in the first place it occurs substitute “the Secretary of State”;
(b)
in the second place it occurs substitute “they”.
(8)
Omit
sub-paragraphs (9)
and
(10)
.
Greater
London Authority Act 1999
27
The Greater London Authority Act 1999 is amended as follows.
[page
73:
line
35
]
28
—
(1)
Section 175 is amended as follows.
(2)
In subsection (1)(a)(ii) omit “are provided under franchise agreements, or”.
(3)
Omit subsection (1A).
[
p
age
74
]
29
In section 177(1)(b) and (2), for “the Secretary of State” substitute “Great
British
Railways”.
30
Omit section 252B(4).
Licensing
Act 2003
[page
74:
line
5
]
31
In
section 157
(7)
of the
Licensing Act 2003
, in the definition of “train
operator”,
for “section 8” substitute “section
7B
or 8”.
Railways
Act 2005
32
The Railways Act 2005 is amended as follows.
33
In
section 5
, after
subsection (3)
insert—
“
[page
74:
line
10
]
(3A)
When preparing or revising the strategy, the Scottish Ministers must
consult
the Passengers’ Council.
”
34
Omit sections 13 and 14 and the italic cross-heading before section 13.
35
In section 46(7)(a), after “section” insert “
7B
or”.
36
Omit section 52.
[page
74:
line
15
]
Railway
(Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2005
37
The
Railway (Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2005
(S.I.
2005/3050)
are amended as follows.
38
In
regulation 2
(1)
, in the definition of “railway undertaking”, after “private
undertaking,”
insert “other than Great British Railways”.
[page
74:
line
20
]
39
—
(1)
Regulation 11
is amended as follows.
(2)
In
paragraph (1)
, omit from “having regard” to the end.
(3)
In
paragraph (3)
, after
paragraph (d)
insert—
“
(e)
requirements to comply with standards set by the Passengers’
Council
under section
46
of the Railways Act 2026;
”
.
[page
74:
line
25
]
40
After
regulation 16
insert—
16A.
“
Role
of the Passengers’ Council
(1)
The ORR must consult the Passengers’ Council—
(a)
before granting a railway undertaking licence which authorises the
carriage
of passengers by railway (a “railway passenger licence”),
[page
74:
line
30
]
(b)
before amending a railway passenger licence if the proposed
amendments
relate to functions of the Council,
(c)
before issuing a SNRP to the holder of a railway passenger licence,
and
[
p
age
75
]
(d)
before modifying the conditions of a SNRP issued to the holder of
a
railway passenger licence if the proposed modifications relate to
functions
of the Council.
(2)
As soon as practicable after granting or amending a railway passenger
[page
75:
line
5
]
licence,
the ORR must send a copy of the licence or the amendments to
the
Passengers’ Council.
(3)
As soon as practicable after issuing a SNRP to the holder of a railway
passenger
licence or modifying the conditions of a SNRP issued to the
holder
of a railway passenger licence, the ORR must send a copy of the
[page
75:
line
10
]
SNRP
or the modifications to the Passengers’ Council.
”
41
Omit
regulations 17
and
19
.
42
In
Schedule 3
, omit
paragraph 6
.
Regulation
(EC) No 1371/2007
on rail passengers’ rights and obligations
43
Regulation (EC) No 1371/2007 of the European Parliament and of the
[page
75:
line
15
]
Council
of 23 October 2007 on rail passengers’ rights and obligations is
amended
as follows.
44
In
Article 2
(1)
of
Regulation (EC) No 1371/2007 of the European Parliament
and
of the Council
of 23rd October 2007 on rail passengers’ rights and
obligations,
after “provided by” insert—
[page
75:
line
20
]
(a)
Great British Railways, or
45
In
Article 29
(2)
(a)
(information to passengers about their rights)—
(a)
for “regulations 13(1) and 18(1) and (3)” substitute “regulation 13(1)”,
and
[page
75:
line
25
]
(b)
after “2010” insert “,
section 44
of the Railways Act 2026 and
section
252DA
of the Greater London Authority Act 1999”.
46
In
Article 30
(2)
(enforcement), for
paragraph (b)
substitute—
“
(b)
to the Passengers’ Council in relation to a matter mentioned
in
paragraph
(a)
or
(b)
of section
44
of the Railways Act 2026;
[page
75:
line
30
]
(c)
to the London Transport Users’ Committee in relation to a
matter
mentioned in
paragraph (a)
or
(b)
of
section 252DA
(1)
of
the
Greater London Authority Act 1999
.
”
Local
Transport Act 2008
47
In
section 102I
(7)
of the
Local Transport Act 2008
, after
paragraph (f)
[page
75:
line
35
]
insert—
“
(fa)
Great British Railways;
”
.
[
p
age
76
]
Planning
Act 2008
48
In
section 25
(5)
(a)
of the
Planning Act 2008
, for “section 8” substitute
“section
7B
or 8”.
Equality
Act 2010
[page
76:
line
5
]
49
In
Part 1
of
Schedule 19
to the
Equality Act 2010
(authorities subject to
public
sector equality duty), at the appropriate place under the heading
“Transport”,
insert—
“
Great
British Railways.
”
Rail
Passengers’ Rights and Obligations Regulations 2010
[page
76:
line
10
]
50
The
Rail Passengers’ Rights and Obligations Regulations 2010
(S.I.
2010/1504)
are amended as follows.
51
—
(1)
Regulation 17
is amended as follows.
(2)
In the heading, at the beginning insert “Great British Railways”.
(3)
In
paragraph (1)
, for “(2) and” substitute “(1A) to”.
[page
76:
line
15
]
(4)
After
paragraph (1)
insert—
“
(1A)
This paragraph applies to a breach by Great British Railways of the
requirements
imposed on Great British Railways by the provisions
of
the European Regulation listed in the Schedule.
”
.
52
Omit
regulation 18
.
[page
76:
line
20
]
Railways
(Access, Management and Licensing of Railway Undertakings) Regulations 2016
53
—
(1)
The 2016 Regulations are amended as follows.
(2)
Omit
regulation 11
.
(3)
In
regulation 12
(2)
(c)
, omit “the strategy referred to in regulation 11 and”.
(4)
Omit
regulation 31
(1)
.
Railways Bill
[As Introduced]
A
bill
to
Make provision about railways and railway services; and for connected purposes.
Presented by
Secretary Heidi Alexander
supported by
The Prime Minister, The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Secretary Steve Reed, Secretary Ed Miliband, Secretary Peter Kyle, Secretary Douglas Alexander, Secretary Jo Stevens and James Murray
Ordered, by The
House of Commons
, to be Printed,
5th November 2025
.
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