My Lords, I will speak to Amendment 54 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, and Amendment 55 in the name of my noble friend Lord Moylan. Obviously, I have not heard my noble friend’s exposition of the purpose of his amendment, which I look forward to listening...

My Lords, I will speak to Amendment 54 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, and Amendment 55 in the name of my noble friend Lord Moylan. Obviously, I have not heard my noble friend’s exposition of the purpose of his amendment, which I look forward to listening...

May I just say that three months’ notice is not a long time and any arbitrary cut cannot possibly take place in three months because timetables, trains and rosters have to be altered? Three months is a very short amount of time to give the rail regulator to make decisions.

I...

May I just say that three months’ notice is not a long time and any arbitrary cut cannot possibly take place in three months because timetables, trains and rosters have to be altered? Three months is a very short amount of time to give the rail regulator to make decisions.

I...

I am grateful for the noble Lord’s intervention. I had not yet started dealing with his amendment in detail—I was dealing with my noble friend Lord Moylan’s—but I listened carefully to what he said and will deal with it when I get to his amendment.

I am not sure that I...

I am grateful for the noble Lord’s intervention. I had not yet started dealing with his amendment in detail—I was dealing with my noble friend Lord Moylan’s—but I listened carefully to what he said and will deal with it when I get to his amendment.

I am not sure that I...

My Lords, what an absolute pleasure it is to hear from my railway expert noble friend Lord Bradshaw. It is such a delight that he has been able to join us in Committee in person today and to contribute to our debate, particularly after he had a significant birthday yesterday.

Funding...

My Lords, what an absolute pleasure it is to hear from my railway expert noble friend Lord Bradshaw. It is such a delight that he has been able to join us in Committee in person today and to contribute to our debate, particularly after he had a significant birthday yesterday.

Funding...

My Lords, I have a number of amendments in this group: Amendments 55, 56, 70, 78 and 86. I start with Amendment 78. Paragraph 15 of Schedule 2 states:

“Financial assistance given to Great British Railways or a GBR company”

primarily to enable it to carry out its infrastructure functions under Clause...

My Lords, I have a number of amendments in this group: Amendments 55, 56, 70, 78 and 86. I start with Amendment 78. Paragraph 15 of Schedule 2 states:

“Financial assistance given to Great British Railways or a GBR company”

primarily to enable it to carry out its infrastructure functions under Clause...

My Lords, briefly, the amendments from the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, on producing a business plan are absolutely essential because, as he noted, the railways need long-term investment. It is not just trains which need to somehow be ordered 10 or 20 years before they are needed but things such...

My Lords, briefly, the amendments from the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, on producing a business plan are absolutely essential because, as he noted, the railways need long-term investment. It is not just trains which need to somehow be ordered 10 or 20 years before they are needed but things such...

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords for this debate on group 5 and will echo the noble Baroness, Lady Pidgeon: it is a delight to see the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, in his place this afternoon. I am sure that the rest of the Grand Committee wishes him, as...

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords for this debate on group 5 and will echo the noble Baroness, Lady Pidgeon: it is a delight to see the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, in his place this afternoon. I am sure that the rest of the Grand Committee wishes him, as...

I start by saying how much I disagree with the remarks of the noble Lord, Lord Harper. His idea that parliamentary scrutiny is carried out properly in the House of Commons is absolutely false, because the whipping system there does not permit a full and frank discussion such as we...

I start by saying how much I disagree with the remarks of the noble Lord, Lord Harper. His idea that parliamentary scrutiny is carried out properly in the House of Commons is absolutely false, because the whipping system there does not permit a full and frank discussion such as we...

Moved by

Baroness Pidgeon

57: Schedule 2, page 70, line 15, after “services” insert “, including passenger services,”

Member’s explanatory statement

This amendment and two others to Schedule 2 in the name of Baroness Pidgeon would align funding of designated passenger train services with the five-year funding cycle for infrastructure.

Moved by

Baroness Pidgeon

57: Schedule 2, page 70, line 15, after “services” insert “, including passenger services,”

Member’s explanatory statement

This amendment and two others to Schedule 2 in the name of Baroness Pidgeon would align funding of designated passenger train services with the five-year funding cycle for infrastructure.

My Amendments 57, 58 and 61 are about aligning the funding of designated passenger train services with the five-year funding cycle for infrastructure. There is absolutely no point in bringing track and train together if their funding cycles are over different periods of time. For this new organisation to succeed...

My Amendments 57, 58 and 61 are about aligning the funding of designated passenger train services with the five-year funding cycle for infrastructure. There is absolutely no point in bringing track and train together if their funding cycles are over different periods of time. For this new organisation to succeed...

My Lords, I will speak on my two amendments in this group, Amendments 67 and 72. Amendment 67 is simply another opportunity, as there was in the last group, to explore and, I hope, again extract assurance from the Minister that the business plan and GBR’s statements in it will...

My Lords, I will speak on my two amendments in this group, Amendments 67 and 72. Amendment 67 is simply another opportunity, as there was in the last group, to explore and, I hope, again extract assurance from the Minister that the business plan and GBR’s statements in it will...

In response to the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Lansley, about the subsidy, the consequence of what he is suggesting could happen is that GBR could subsidise a passenger service that was on the same route as, and in competition with, a private sector operator. To me, that...

In response to the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Lansley, about the subsidy, the consequence of what he is suggesting could happen is that GBR could subsidise a passenger service that was on the same route as, and in competition with, a private sector operator. To me, that...

I am not sure if that is a question to me, but let us assume it is. I am not sure that I am saying that. I am saying that, as things stand under this Bill, the Secretary of State is not providing money to GBR for the purpose of...

I am not sure if that is a question to me, but let us assume it is. I am not sure that I am saying that. I am saying that, as things stand under this Bill, the Secretary of State is not providing money to GBR for the purpose of...

My Lords, Amendment 314 in my name, supported by my noble friend Lord Moylan, enters the arcane world of Treasury theology—what is and what is not public expenditure. It would require the Secretary of State to report on the impact of the Bill on public finances. This is important because...

My Lords, Amendment 314 in my name, supported by my noble friend Lord Moylan, enters the arcane world of Treasury theology—what is and what is not public expenditure. It would require the Secretary of State to report on the impact of the Bill on public finances. This is important because...

My Lords, it is difficult to follow my noble friend Lord Young of Cookham because his expositions of difficult issues are always so clear and compelling. There is a movement on the left wing of the Labour Party—which is well represented in your Lordships’ House—to nationalise the roscos so that...

My Lords, it is difficult to follow my noble friend Lord Young of Cookham because his expositions of difficult issues are always so clear and compelling. There is a movement on the left wing of the Labour Party—which is well represented in your Lordships’ House—to nationalise the roscos so that...

My Lords, Amendments 57, 58 and 61 are about the funding of passenger services. In principle, I support the intentions of these amendments and acknowledge the benefits to business planning that aligning the funding cycles could bring. However, the reality of passenger services funding is that it is inextricably tied...

My Lords, Amendments 57, 58 and 61 are about the funding of passenger services. In principle, I support the intentions of these amendments and acknowledge the benefits to business planning that aligning the funding cycles could bring. However, the reality of passenger services funding is that it is inextricably tied...

Is the noble Lord’s position that one of the consequences of this Bill, if enacted—we will not know for some months until after it is enacted—is that roughly £25 billion-worth of rolling stock could be added to government debt? I do not want to argue about the figure, but I...

Is the noble Lord’s position that one of the consequences of this Bill, if enacted—we will not know for some months until after it is enacted—is that roughly £25 billion-worth of rolling stock could be added to government debt? I do not want to argue about the figure, but I...

Since it is independent, nobody can predict the consequences of an Office for National Statistics examination until it concludes one. I said that the Secretary of State will work with it, because it will also need to consider the recent past. The Bill is in Parliament because it has cross-government...

Since it is independent, nobody can predict the consequences of an Office for National Statistics examination until it concludes one. I said that the Secretary of State will work with it, because it will also need to consider the recent past. The Bill is in Parliament because it has cross-government...

I am sorry to press the noble Lord. I agree that if the ONS is independent he cannot say what its decision will be, but he could secure that decision before the passage of the legislation. That cannot be too difficult. Given the consequence, it must be possible to secure...

I am sorry to press the noble Lord. I agree that if the ONS is independent he cannot say what its decision will be, but he could secure that decision before the passage of the legislation. That cannot be too difficult. Given the consequence, it must be possible to secure...

I already said that one thing the Secretary of State will do is to help the ONS with its understanding of both the recent past and what will happen as a consequence of the Bill. In the recent past, the Government have specified, to the most extraordinarily detailed degree, all...

I already said that one thing the Secretary of State will do is to help the ONS with its understanding of both the recent past and what will happen as a consequence of the Bill. In the recent past, the Government have specified, to the most extraordinarily detailed degree, all...