Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what specification and configuration of electric trains the new depot at Kettering will be built for; and where those trains will receive heavy maintenance.

We recently issued the East Midlands Franchise competition Invitation to Tender. In response, bidders are required to set out their proposed rolling stock, depot, maintenance, and stabling strategies. We will then evaluate the proposals before announcing the preferred bidder in Spring 2019.

The Midland Main Line Programme includes the construction of stabling facilities at Kettering for up to four 240m length electric trains. Network Rail are designing and building the facility in line with a set of agreed assumptions, and these assumptions have been provided to bidders to develop their proposals.