§ Mr. SpearingTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what conditions he plans to include in the sale of Railtrack concerning sale of land and buildings that(a) fulfil an operational or civic purpose and (b) could be considered to be relevant to those future roles by (i) train operators and (ii) statutory bodies. [8301]
§ Mr. WattsNo such conditions obtain at present and this position will not be affected by privatisation. However, the rigorous closure procedures set out in the Railways Act 1993 will continue to apply in respect of any proposal by Railtrack to close a part of its operational passenger network.
§ Mr. BayleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his oral statement of 18 December,Official Report, column 1236, if he will (a) place in the Library a copy of the new instructions and guidance to the franchising director relating to passenger service requirements, (b) set out how and with whom he will consult about the terms of the new instructions and guidance and (c) indicate from what date the new instructions and guidance will take effect. [8092]
§ Mr. WattsMy right hon. Friend expects to issue new instructions and guidance to the franchising director shortly. Instructions and guidance are not subject to consultation. They will come into effect as soon as they are issued. A copy will be placed in the Library.
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§ Mr. BayleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will place in the Library the passenger service specifications contained in each of the bids received for the South West Trains franchise. [8093]
§ Mr. WattsA copy of the passenger service requirement for the South West Trains franchise is in the Library. The PSR is the contractually guaranteed level of service that the franchising director requires the franchise operator to provide. All competitors for the franchise bid on that basis. Stagecoach Holdings plc has stated its intention to maintain existing service levels. The franchise agreement between the franchising director and Stagecoach, which details the various contractual obligations the franchisee must meet, will be placed on the franchising director's register, which is a publicly available document. Information about unsuccessful bids is commercially confidential.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what regulations will exist in respect of the salaries, expenses and other remunerative benefits of the board and senior management of Railtrack following the flotation. [7784]
§ Mr. WattsAs a listed company, Railtrack Group PLC will have to comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 1985 and the Stock Exchange listing rules. On 6 September 1995, Bob Horton, Railtrack chairman, announced that Railtrack's policy is to adopt high standards in its corporate governance in the area of directors' remuneration, consistent with the Greenbury code. In his announcement, he said that share options would not be part of directors' remuneration and that a long-term incentive scheme was being developed to ensure that directors' pay reflected the performance of the company and was felt fair by the work force as a whole. Share-based participation arrangements are also being developed for the work force as a whole. Railtrack will make a full statement on directors' remuneration and these schemes in particular, prior to flotation of the company.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list, for each passenger rail franchisee, the targets for increases in passengers. [7778]
§ Mr. WattsThe agreements between the franchising director arid the franchisees for Great Western Trains, South West Trains and LTS Rail do not include targets for increases in the number of passengers. However, each agreement contains specific commitments for improvements to passenger and station services, and the Government expect these to generate increased use of passenger and rail services.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the measures he is taking to write off the debts of Railtrack. [7781]
§ Mr. WattsNo decisions have yet been taken on the appropriate capital structure for Railtrack when it is privatised.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assurances he has sought from the new owners of former British Railways Board freight and parcels subsidiaries over the continued use of railways for conveyance of their traffic. [7773]
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of the sale value of the rolling stock leasing companies has been allocated to investment in the railway network. [7775]
§ Mr. WattsThe three passenger rolling stock leasing companies will compete in the open market to supply new and refurbished trains to the operating companies. Sale proceeds will not be hypothecated.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to begin selling shares in Railtrack. [7779]
§ Mr. WattsWe expect to float Railtrack in May 1996. More precise timing will be announced in due course.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements are currently being made by the Director of Passenger Rail Franchising to promote privileged travel for railway employees and dependants. [7770]
§ Mr. WattsThe franchising director will protect privileged travel arrangements for existing railway employees and their dependants in the reorganised railway. New arrangements have been made through the Association of Train Operating Companies' staff travel scheme in which British Rail and franchise operators participate. This scheme ensures that employers can continue to give special travel facilities to those currently entitled to them. It covers staff and former staff and their dependants of British Rail and its subsidiaries, including those recruited by BR up to 31 March 1996; staff and former staff and their dependants of Railtrack, including those recruited up to 31 March 1996 or the date of flotation of Railtrack, if earlier; and staff and former staff and their dependants of third party employers where concessionary staff travel arrangements with British Rail were in place prior to 11 December 1995. British Rail employees who, as a result of reorganisation, transfer to a new employer will take with them their existing contractual entitlements to staff travel facilities.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the amount of public money which has been granted to qualifying railway employees from the preparation of franchise bids in respect of(a) London, Tilbury and Southend Rail, (b) South West Trains; and (c) Great Western. [7774]
§ Mr. WattsThis is a matter for the British Railways Board.
Financial assistance, up to a maximum of £100,000, is available from BR to qualifying management employee buy-out teams towards their costs in preparation for pre-qualification, and for professional advice in mounting a bid if they qualify.
Assistance is repayable if the bid succeeds.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list those types of railcard which have not been guaranteed by the Railways Act 1993. [7787]
§ Mr. WattsFranchise operators will be required to offer young persons, senior and disabled persons railcards. Voluntary schemes administered by the Association of Train Operating Companies have been prepared to allow 29W the continuation of the family railcard, network card, and the HM forces railcard. All train-operating companies—including those for which franchise agreements have been signed—are members of these schemes.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of Railtrack's 10-year investment plan will be funded from(a) the company's own resources, (b) grants from public funds, (c) asset disposal and (d) the private finance initiative or other sources of private money. [7776]
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what has been the total cost to public funds so far in this financial year for(a) consultants and (b) other advisers for the Office of Passenger Rail Franchising. [7777]
§ Mr. WattsThe total cost to public funds of consultants and advisers in 1995–96—to end of December 1995—is £21.5 million.
§ Mr. ChidgeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if rail operators are required to consider the environmental impact of increased journeys by car resulting from(a) reductions in rail services and (b) closure of rail lines. [8131]
§ Mr. WattsUntil passenger services are franchised, service levels are a commercial matter for British Rail. After franchising, core passenger service levels are guaranteed contractually through passenger service requirements. The closure of lines is subject to rigorous statutory closure. procedures.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements he is making for compliance with EC directive No. 91/440 (EEC) following the privatisation of Railtrack. [7786]
§ Mr. WattsRailtrack, as infrastructure manager, will have to comply with the directive as implemented in this country by the Railways Regulations 1992 and the Railways (Amendment) Regulations 1994.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of Railtrack shares he expects to sell when the company is privatised. [7780]
§ Mr. WattsWe expect to offer at least 51 per cent. of the equity of Railtrack. No further decision on the precise figure has been taken.
The UK public offer is expected to represent not less than 30 per cent. of the shares available in the offer, with the possibility of this amount being increased in the event of strong retail demand.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to have transferred 51 per cent. of passenger rail franchises to the private sector. [7771]
§ Mr. WattsFranchises representing some 50 per cent. of services in terms of passenger revenue have either been awarded or put out to tender to the private sector. The franchising director continues to make good progress towards his principal objective of franchising passenger rail services as soon as is reasonably practicable.
30W
§ Ms ShortTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list all research and consultancy contracts let by his Department concerning the privatisation of the railways over the threshold of £150,000, the dates of the relevant invitation advertisements in theEuropean Journal and the dates of the contract award announcements. [7347]
§ Mr. WattsThe information for contracts let by my Department, currently valued at more than £150,000 excluding VAT, is listed in the table.
The process for announcing contract awards has varied so the table includes the date for the start of each contract.
31W
Consultant Type Date of invitation notice Start of contract Samuel Montagu Merchant Banking n/a November 1988 Coopers and Lybrand Access charges n/a December 1991 Linklaters and Paines Legal advice n/a August 1992 KPMG Peat Marwick Accountancy and Taxation n/a August 1992 Mercer Management Restructuring options for freight n/a September 1992 Richard Ellis Property advisers n/a February 1993 Ernst and Young Information systems n/a June 1993 Dewe Rogerson Ltd. Marketing n/a June 1993 Hambros Bank Ltd. Merchant Banking 14 July 1994 OJEC Ref: 94/S 133-PA47046/EN August 1994 Ernst and Young Corporate finance advice on BRIS contract pricing n/a September 1994 Travers Morgan Specialist advice on BRIS contract pricing n/a September 1994 Freshfields Legal advice n/a October 1994 Price Waterhouse Accountancy 10 August 1994 OJEC Ref: 94/S 152-PA53120/EN December 1994 SBC Warburg Merchant Banking 10 August 1994 OJEC Ref: 94/S 152-PA53120/EN December 1994 Ernst and Young Accountancy 10 August 1994 OJEC Ref: 94/S 152-PA53120/EN January 1995 Linklaters and Paines Legal Advice n/a December 1994 Mercer Management Freightliner access charges n/a February 1995
Consultant Type Date of invitation notice Start of contract Richard Ellis Property Advisers 10 August 1994 OJEC Ref: 94/S 152-PA53120/EN March 1995 Touche Ross Reporting Accountants 10 August 1994 OJEC Ref: 94/S 152-PA53120/EN March 1995 Solid Solutions Associates Retail Offer Adviser n/a June 1995 Shearman and Sterling US Lawyers n/a July 1995 Dewe Rogerson Ltd. Marketing 10 August 1994 OJEC Ref:94/S 152-PA53120/EN August 1995 Royal Bank of Scotland Receiving Bank n/a August 1995 Royal Mail Postal services n/a October 1995 Royal Bank of Scotland Custodian Bank n/a November 1995 Mercer Management/NERA Options for Railfreight Distribution 10 August 1994 OJEC Ref: 94/S 152-PA53120/EN December 1995 Bowne International Printing and Publishing Services 8 August 1995 OJEC Ref: 95/S 149- PA79013/EN December 1995 HP:ICM International Road Show 7 November 1995 OJEC Ref: 95/S 212 PA116782/EN January 1996 n/a - not applicable.
§ Mr. BayleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the current timetable for(a) fundraising each passenger service, (b) selling each BR-owned freight business, (c) selling each BR-owned infrastructure company, (d) selling each of the other BR businesses and (e) selling Railtrack, indicating the date that bids were or will be invited and the date on which the Government expect that the franchise or business will be sold in each case. [6182]
§ Mr. WattsTo date, 27 businesses have been sold. These are listed at table A. In addition, the two remaining rolling stock leasing companies have been sold subject to contract; sales will be completed within the next few weeks.
The timetable for franchising and future sales is set down in list A. This gives indications only of when sales are expected to be completed or franchises awarded. More precise dates could prejudice negotiations.
32W
Table A Sale/Sold Month Freight Red Star Sold 5 September 1995 Rail express systems Ltd. Sold 9 December 1995
Table Sale/Sold Month OTHER BUSINESSES Special Trains Unit Sale completed 31 March 1995 BRIS Design Offices DCU Birmingham Sold 25 July 1995 Mainline Swindon Sold 18 August 1995 IDG Glasgow Sold 18 August 1995 BPE Mechanical and Engineering Consultancy, Doncaster Sold 15 September 1995 Civil Engineering Design Group, York Sold 15 September 1995 Powertrack Engineering Company Ltd. Sold 15 December 1995 CEDAC London Ltd Sold 15 December 1995 BR Maintenance Ltd. Swindon Electronic Service Centre Sold 11 April 1995 Chart Leacon (Ashford), Ilford, and Doncaster Depots Sold 5 June 1995 Wolverton, and Springburn (Glasgow) Depots Sold 6 June 1995 Eastleigh Depot Sold 7 June 1995 BR Telecommunications Ltd. Sale completed 21 December 1995 BR Central Services Meldon Quarry Ltd. Sold February 1994 Baileyfield Switches and Crossings Works Sold 7 July 1995 Ditton Timber Treatment Works Sold 1 September 1995 Quality and Safety Services Ltd. Sold 10 November 1995 Occupational Health Services Ltd. Sold 30 November 1995 Signalling Control (UK) Ltd. Sold 1 December 1995 Interlogic Control Engineering Ltd. Sold 4 January 1996 OBS Services Ltd. Sold 3 October 1995 Rolling stock leasing companies Porterbrook Leasing Ltd. Sale Completed 8 January 1995 Sold subject to contract Angel Train Contracts Ltd. Eversholt Leasing Ltd.
List A
- (a) Franchises
- The Franchising Director is responsible for awarding franchising contracts.
- The Franchising Director awarded the franchise for South West Trains on 19 December and the franchises for Great Western and LTS Rail on 20 December.
- Final bids will be invited, and the award of the franchises will be made, as soon as practicable for InterCity East Coast, Midland Main Line, Network SouthCentral and Gatwick Express.
- Invitations to tender for South Eastern were issued on 19 December. The franchise will be awarded as soon as practicable.
- Invitations to tender for the remaining franchises will be made thereafter.
33 - (b) Freight Businesses
- Final bids for BR's three Trainload Freight companies were invited on 29 September 1995. Sales are likely early in 1996.
- Final bids for Freightliner were invited on 22 December 1995. Sale is anticipated in Spring 1996.
- Railfreight Distribution will be offered for sale as soon as practicable.
- (c) Infrastructure companies
- Final bids for the following 13 businesses were invited on 5 October 1995 and the sales are expected in the coming months:
- Central Infrastructure Maintenance Company Limited
- Central Track Renewals Company Limited
- Scotland Infrastructure Maintenance Company Limited
- Scotland Track Renewals Company Limited
- Western Infrastructure Maintenance Company Limited
- Western Track Renewals Company Limited
- Northern Infrastructure Maintenance Company Limited
- Northern Track Renewals Company Limited
- Eastern Infrastructure Maintenance Company Limited
- Eastern Track Renewals Company Limited
- Southern Track Renewals Company Limited
- South West Infrastructure Maintenance Company Limited
- South East Infrastructure Maintenance Company Limited
- (d) Other BR Businesses
- Final bids for the following businesses were invited:
- Castleton Long Welded Rail Works 1 May 1995
- Rail Projects Limited 23 June 1995
- The engineering link 15 December 1995
- Interfleet Technology 15 December 1995
- Network Train Engineering Services 15 December 1995
- All the above are expected to be sold over the next few months.
- Final bids for the College of Railway Technology were invited on 19 January 1996.
VI senior management 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 Chief Executive/Head 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Other G5 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 G6 Director 8 8 9 6 5 3 3 2 2 Total Executive Directors 9 9 10 8 7 5 5 4 4 Other G6 — — — — — 1 1 2 1 Total G6 and above 9 9 10 8 7 6 6 6 5 Source:
Annual Reports, number of Directors. Position at 31 March.