Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2026 to Question 119493, what roles and functions the 210 staff transferring to DfT Operator Ltd on 1 April 2026 will undertake; from which directorates and business units within her Department those staff are being transferred; how many of those staff are employed in rail policy, rail operations and rail contracting functions; what proportion of those roles are newly created as part of the transition to public ownership; and what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of those transfers on staffing capacity within the core Department.

The functions in scope to transfer from DfT to DFTO include the majority of the Rail Services Group, as well as a small number of teams in the Rail Reform and Strategy Group and the Corporate Delivery Group.

The majority of roles transferring relate to rail policy, rail operations and rail contracting functions, with the exception of a few supporting and administrative roles. The final number of people transferring may change before 1 April due to new joiners and leavers in the 210 roles currently in scope to transfer.

None of the roles in scope to transfer are newly created, as the transition to public ownership is delivered through existing teams, including the Public Ownership Programme Directorate.

In preparation for the transfer the Department has mobilised a new sponsorship model and team, ensuring capacity in the Department and a simplified interface with DFTO.