§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what level of grant aid or subsidy was provided to rail freight for each year between 1979 and 1989.
§ Mr. FreemanBritish Rail's freight business has a commercial remit, and has received no Government grant aid or subsidy in these years apart from its share of level crossings grant under EC regulation 1192/69. Other bodies can receive grants towards the cost of rail freight facilities under section 8 of the Railways Act 1974 if a switch from road freight to rail produces worthwhile environmental benefits at a reasonable cost. Since 1979 the Government have awarded 136 section 8 grants totalling £53 million, removing over 25 million tonnes of freight a year from the roads.