§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will estimate the proportion of Railtrack income from train operating companies which comes from public subsidies to maintain services; and if he will make a statement. [45347]
§ Ms Glenda JacksonTrain operating companies (TOCs) receive Support for Passenger Rail Services (SPRS) from the Franchising Director and grants from Passenger Transport Executives (PTEs). Those subsidies are not hypothecated to cover particular types of expenditure, so they cannot be directly identified as the source of payments made by TOCs to Railtrack. In 1997/98, Railtrack received some £2.1 billion—over 85 per cent. of its total income—from access charges from TOCs. Total public subsidies to TOCs in 1997/98 amounted to some £1.8 billion.