HC Deb 03 June 1991 vol 192 cc5-7
5. Mr. Ian Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he plans to bring forward proposals which would compensate British Rail passengers for poor standards of customer service.

Mr. Rifkind

We are actively pursuing, in co-operation with British Rail, a number of ways in which a higher quality of service can be encouraged and rewarded. As part of this process, we are examining how the interests of passengers can be promoted and protected.

Mr. Taylor

I am grateful to the Secretary of State and heartily welcome his enthusiasm for rail transport. Will he share the misery of commuters from my constituency who suffer from the lack of announcements by British Rail, delays, a complete lack of punctuality and of facilities at stations and from problems of overcrowding caused because trains are not of the right length? They face all those problems, yet, as season ticket holders, they receive no compensation except through the minor and almost secret system of ex gratia payments which British Rail has introduced under the counter. Will he put the matter in the public domain and force British Rail to provide compensation to passengers if they suffer from the inadequacies of the current level of service and if British Rail simply fails to perform?

Mr. Rifkind

As my hon. Friend rightly says, there is an ex gratia payments scheme currently operated by British Rail, which last year paid out about £2.5 million to passengers who suffered from various inconveniences. My hon. Friend is right to refer to the need to consider extending facilities for passengers who have been gravely inconvenienced, not simply on the railways but in other areas. They are matters that my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister said would be the subject of the citizens' charter proposals which are being considered.

Mr. Fearn

Is the Minister aware that if compensation were allocated, British Rail, on its present standing, would lose about £270 million? If so, would not it also be true that the people of Kent and East Anglia would no longer have to pay rail fares?

Mr. Rifkind

The hon. Gentleman should not assume that press speculation is necessarily valid. Clearly, the level of compensation paid would depend on the criteria for entitlement to it, which are still to be considered. France is often given as an example of a country where compensation is paid to passengers. However, if one examines that idea in detail, one finds that TGV passengers receive compensation only if the train is more than three hours late. Therefore, the sums involved tend to be rather small.

Mr. Moate

Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that Kent commuters in particular are entitled to a better standard of service and that the greatest improvement could be secured if he would approve soon the investment in the new Networker Express programme for the Kent coast? Do his new-found expressions of enthusiasm for rail investment include an early announcement of the 741 Networker Express programme for the Kent coast?

Mr. Rifkind

I can tell my hon. Friend that there are various ways in which Kent railway services have been improved in the recent past and, no doubt, will be improved in the weeks and months to come. I cannot make a specific announcement today on the project to which my hon. Friend referred. However, I appreciate the importance attached by Kent commuters to improvement of that service.

Mr. Prescott

May I refer the Secretary of State, in his considerations of ideas for the citizens' charter, to his copy of "Moving Britain into the 1990s", which details the things that need to be done? That would continue the plagiarism of Labour's policies. Will he seriously consider repealing the conditions of carriage for British Rail, bringing in a detailed pricing policy for British Rail, assessing whether the Government have given sufficient financial resources to British Rail to enable it to meet the standards that he wishes to impose on it, and setting up an independent regulatory body to ensure that such standards are confirmed and carried out?

Mr. Rifkind

Those tempted by Labour's proposals for railways for the next Parliament will wish to reflect on what the previous Labour Government did. They will recall that investment in the railways fell each year between 1975 and 1979. They will be reminded that there was a net closure of railway lines—more railway lines closed than were opened during the period of the last Labour Government—whereas in the past 12 years, there has been a net increase in the rail network. They will also applaud the fact that under this Conservative Government no fewer than 163 railway stations have either been opened or reopened since 1979.