Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total external costs of advisers and other bought-in items was to his Department for franchise specification and procurement for each year since 2010-11.

Prior to the re-launch of the Franchising Programme in spring 2013, the costs of different franchising projects were not individually recorded. Figures from April 2013 are as follows:

These figures include adviser costs (financial, technical and legal advisers) and VAT where applicable.

The costs of procuring the current Intercity East Coast franchise (awarded 2015) were not charged to the public purse and are not included in the above figures (these costs were covered by the Performance Bond that National Express put forward following its default of the previous East Coast contract).

Note that the sums invested in each re-franchising project are dwarfed by the (Resource) Support for Passenger Rail Services benefits to the Department from the re-franchising.