§ Baroness Thomas of Walliswoodasked Her Majesty's Government:
What powers the Railway Heritage Committee has in designating for preservation records and artefacts in the privately owned successor companies to the British Railways Board; whether those powers are in their view adequate and what steps they are taking, and with what urgency, to strengthen those powers in the light of the Government's objective of achieving a significant transfer of the publicly owned railway to the private sector within the life of this Parliament.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Transport (Viscount Goschen)The present powers of the Railways Heritage Committee under Section 125 of the Railways Act 1993 apply only to the records and artefacts of the railway industry remaining in the public sector. The Government are considering how to extend the powers of the committee to apply in relation to records and artefacts of the railway industry owned by companies which are not in the public sector.