Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to review the Office of Rail and Road’s approach to the economic regulation of Network Rail before the commencement of Control Period 6 in May 2019.

The Government last reviewed the role and functions of the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) in 2016 and the findings of this review emphasised the important role that independent economic regulation plays within the rail industry. The ORR has made significant changes to its regulatory approach to inform the planning for Control Period 6 (CP6), with an increased emphasis on route-level regulation of Network Rail and bottom-up appraisals of the deliverability and efficiency of its plans. The Government will continue to work closely with the ORR in its preparations for CP6, but does not plan any further review of the ORR at this time.