Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answers of 9 May 2018 to Questions 140753 and 140754 provided on May 9th on Network Rail: Standards, whether the Office for Rail and Road will be able to levy financial penalties on Network Rail in the event that it does not deliver improvements to (a) unit costs and (b) productivity in Control Period 6.

Government set out its High Level Output Specification and Statement of Funds Available for the railway during 2017. In doing so, Government made clear its expectation that improvements in the efficiency of the management of rail infrastructure will be made over the course of Control Period 6.

The independent Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is in the process of producing its Draft Determination, which is expected to be published in the course of June. Alongside this, the ORR will update the Network Licence by which it holds NR to account, and may review the associated enforcement policies which determine the means by which penalties may be levied upon Network Rail.

Decisions on this issue are properly a matter for the ORR, which is accountable to Parliament, rather than Government.

ORR has the ability to levy financial penalties on Network Rail for a licence breach.