Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the timeline for procurement by Great British Railways.

We will replace franchising with a more commercially sustainable model. New Passenger Service Contracts will ensure that private sector innovation is targeted where is it is most needed, with private sector operators strongly incentivised to run high quality punctual services, manage costs and attract more passengers.

Transformation on this scale cannot happen overnight. Government is setting up a Rail Transformation Programme within the Department for Transport and working with the rail sector to ensure a common understanding of the vision, establish the phases of delivery, and work collectively with the sector to design and implement this major project.

An announcement on next steps will be made in due course.