18 Jun 2002 : Column 179W
Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 18 June 2002
TRANSPORT
Network Rail
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how much private finance will be brought in under the proposal for company limited by guarantee made by Network Rail; and in what areas this money is budgeted to be spent; [60652]
- (2) if he will make a statement on the proposed funding arrangement for the successor to Railtrack, as given by the proposal for a company limited by guarantee made by Network Rail; and if he will make a statement. [60651]
Mr. Darling: Negotiations are continuing on a commercially confidential basis with Network Rail.
Railtrack
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much money has been (a) lent, (b) granted and (c) guaranteed to Railtrack by the Government and SRA since Railtrack was placed in administration. [58014]
Mr. Spellar: I have been asked to reply.
(a) I refer the right hon. Member to the reply given to the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling) on 15 April 2002, Official Report, column 742W.
(b) Railtrack plc received a grant of £162 million on 16 November 2001 and £493 million on 1 April 2002 as part of Appendix D of the Rail Regulator's October 2000 Periodic Review and the 1 April 2001 agreement between the Government and Railtrack.
(c) As announced on 25 March 2002, the Administrators of Railtrack plc have secured up to £4.4 billion of commercial banking facilities, backed by a Government guarantee. This has enabled them to repay the short-term commercial loan that Government provided on 7 October 2001.
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was spent on maintenance by Railtrack in each of the last five years; and if he will publish the expected expenditure on maintenance for the (a) current and (b) next year. [60654]
Mr. Darling: The information requested is shown in the following table:
| Financial year | Maintenance expenditure in £ million cash |
|---|---|
| 1996–97 | 732 |
| 1997–98 | 702 |
| 1998–99 | 694 |
| 1999–2000 | 663 |
| 2000–01 | 715 |
| 2001–02 | (1)943 |
| 2002–03 | (2)1,112 |
(1) projected
(2) budget
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Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if the results of the enhanced basic questionnaire for prospective Railtrack contractors will be made available to the public. [62443]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 788W [60599].
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what maintenance delivery and other improvements are being followed up by Railtrack in line with the Cullen report. [62446]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 786W [60602].
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if his Department is represented on the Railtrack Safety Executive; [62455]
- (2) if he will place a copy of the programme of safety tours that the Chief Executive Officer of Railtrack undertakes; [62454]
(3) what meetings his Department has had with Railtrack officials since the Southall rail accident. [62441]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 784W.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will list the steps to be completed by Railtrack to comply with the recommendations of the Cullen report into the Ladbroke Grove rail inquiry, indicating the timescales for these activities and the costs involved; [62442]
- (2) if he will publish the results of the development of a corporate training and development strategy by Railtrack, as outlined in the Cullen report. [62456]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 786W.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the deferred timescales for Railtrack for the revised selection process for prospective contractors. [62444]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 788W.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the 10 strategic maintenance principles developed by Railtrack that involve Railtrack directly managing inspection, appraisal and key work decisions. [62445]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, columns 786–87W.
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Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport who has responsibility to ensure that (a) Railtrack and (b) its successor company carry out all necessary maintenance work on the rail network. [60647]
Mr. Darling: It is for a network operator to comply with the terms and conditions of its network licence. Enforcement of licence conditions is a matter for the Rail Regulator. Additionally the Health and Safety Executive is responsible for enforcement of safety matters on the railway.
Railways
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer of 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 778W, on railways, how much of the money provided by the SRA (a) will be spent in Scotland and (b) has been spent so far. [62064]
Mr. Jamieson: This is a national initiative. Funding is not being allocated geographically. No money has yet been spent.
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the condition of the railway track on the line between Liverpool Street and Colchester. [58992]
Mr. Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
Track condition is an operational matter for Railtrack. Railtrack and their contractor, Balfour Beatty have inspected this line and have assured my Department that this line is safe. The Health and Safety Executive have also said that the line is safe.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the proposals for establishment of a railway industry safety body; and if he will place the consultation papers in the Library. [62440]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 784W.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if the development group meetings of key stakeholders of the rail industry safety body will be available to the public. [62452]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, columns 784–85W.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the initiatives and management systems that the rail industry use to ensure employee involvement in safety issues. [62453]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 785W.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the terms of reference, term of office and the job description for the successful candidate applying for the position of director in Her Majesty's Railway Inspectorate. [62449]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 789W.
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Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will make a statement on the reasons for non-completion of recommendations 4, 6, 9 and 72 of the Cullen report into the Ladbroke Grove rail inquiry; and what the timetable is for their completion; [62438]
- (2) what the terms of reference are for the local management teams that monitor the implementation of contracts for the rail industry. [62448]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 786W [60604].
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the shortcomings in the scope of contract documentation reported in the Cullen report on the Ladbroke Grove Rail Inquiry. [62447]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 786W [60603].
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the primary legislation required to set up the Railway Advisory Investigation Branch will be published. [62451]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 784W [60607].
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on details regarding the timescale, terms of reference and costing of the consultation exercise on the establishment of an independent rail accident investigation body. [62439]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002 Official Report, column 785W [60595].
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the terms of reference are for the two additional members of the Railway Industry Advisory Committee; and from which areas nominations will be accepted. [62450]
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, columns 789–90W.
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what budgetary provision has been made for compensating train operating companies for increases in track access charges determined by the Rail Regulator in the current and future control periods. [62978]
Mr. Spellar: Payments made to train operating companies by the Strategic Rail Authority under franchise agreements are automatically adjusted by the amount of any change in fixed track access charges determined by the Rail Regulator. For the current control period the amount of 10-year plan funding committed to the rail industry was set, and subsequently adjusted, to reflect the (October 2000) final conclusions of the Rail Regulator's periodic review of access charges. For future control periods, track access charges will be determined by future periodic reviews.
Mr. Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the SRA about improving the skills level on the railways; and will he make a statement. [62033]
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Mr. Jamieson: The SRA, in conjunction with DfES, is taking forward work identified in the Framework for Skills in the Rail industry, published in March last year. The first progress report was published in December. The SRA is also leading on proposals for a National Rail Academy, to take a strategic overview of skills in the rail industry. It will be working closely with other key stakeholders and aims to consult widely on the proposals in the autumn.
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