Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer of 20 October 2025, to Question 78720, on South West Railway: Nationalisation, whether the pubic purse is liable for potential (a) losses, (b) cost over-runs and (c) increases in costs.

Under public ownership, the Government takes on all revenue and cost risk. This has largely been the case since the pandemic too, when Government implemented emergency contractual arrangements which involved taking on all revenue and the vast majority of cost risk from the train operating companies – except now, the Government will not additionally be paying management or performance fees to private operators and, indirectly, their shareholders.