§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information he keeps regarding the proportion of gross domestic product spent on(a) buses, (b) trains and (c) all public transport, annually, for the years 1979 to 1993, inclusive.
§ Mr. FreemanExpenditure on public transport, by passengers and through grants and subsidies, as a percentage of GDP was as follows
West Coast Main Line.for later sale:Central Region; Cross Country; North East Region; Thames; West Anglia and Great Northern; Kent Link and Kent Coast Lines; Northampton and North London Lines; Chiltern Line; Great Eastern; North West Region; Thameslink.Railtrack to be privatised in due course. There is no timetable for sale.Freight businesses: Freightliner (BR's container business) and Red Star (express parcels) were advertised for sale in May 1994. BR's trainload freight services, and the Rail Express systems (mail train business) will be offered for sale in 1995. The Channel Tunnel freight services will be privatised once they have been established fully.Fourteen Infrastructure Service Units. Sales due to be completed by April 1996.European Passengers Services (a Government owned company). The intention is for EPS to be transferred in 1995, along with Union Railways (a subsidiary of the British Railways Board), to the consortium chosen to build and own the Channel Tunnel Rail Link.Some 30 other businesses which provide support services to the railway industry will be offered for sale as soon as possible. they include:
- British Rail Telecommunications plc;
- British Rail Maintenance Ltd. and Level 5 depots;
- The Works Division;
- Marketing Services;
- Technical Services;
- Business Systems;
- Quality and Safety Systems;
- Training activities and establishments
Note: Two of these businesses will be offered to the private sector