Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when she plans to publish the draft statutory Code of Practice governing retail market conduct under Great British Railways; whether she plans to consult on that Code of Practice; and whether that Code will be in place ahead of the commencement of Great British Railways’ retail functions.

The future rail retail industry code of practice will set out clear requirements for how Great British Railways (GBR) interacts with all market participants. It will be owned and managed by the ORR, and GBR’s licence will require compliance with it. The Railways Bill enables the Secretary of State to introduce the licence condition that will underpin the code of practice and give it force.

The government has confirmed that there will be full consultation on the production of the code of practice. Further detail on that consultation will be set out in due course. The Code of Practice will come into force in alignment with GBR's beginning to retail and taking on responsibility for wider retail industry management functions.