Select Committee · Transport Committee

Railways Bill

Status: Open Opened: 5 Nov 2025 22 recommendations 11 conclusions 1 report

The Government has introduced the Railways Bill to Parliament to legislate for its commitment to unify network operations with infrastructure management under a single organisation – Great British Railways. The Bill is expected to go through ‘line by line’ scrutiny by a Public Bill Committee, which is separate to the Transport Committee. Given the significant …

Reports

1 report

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
8th Report - Railways Bill	HC 1472	10 Feb 2026	33	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

3 items

20 Recommendation 8th Report - Railways Bill Not Addressed

Add Passengers' Council Chair to posts requiring pre-appointment parliamentary committee hearings.

To enhance and help safeguard the independence of the Passengers’ Council, we recommend that the Chair of its board be added to the list of posts for which our Committee is expected to hold a pre-appointment hearing with the Government’s preferred candidate. (Recommendation, Paragraph 57)

Government response. The government's response discusses working with local leaders through GBR business units and MSAs, but fails to address the recommendation to add the Passengers’ Council Chair to the list of posts for pre-appointment hearings.

Department for Transport

28 Recommendation 8th Report - Railways Bill Not Addressed

Amend the Bill to clarify capacity duty only applies post-infrastructure plan development.

While the Government insists that the intended relationship between clause 60 and clause 63 is clear, multiple stakeholders disagree. The Bill should be amended to make it clear that the capacity duty does not apply until after an infrastructure capacity plan has been developed. (Recommendation, Paragraph 72)

Government response. The government disagrees that the Bill needs amending and will instead provide additional clarity which Ministers would be happy to repeat on the floor of the House to reassure stakeholders and the Committee alike; clause 63 duty does not apply …

Department for Transport

31 Recommendation 8th Report - Railways Bill Not Addressed

Require GBR to enter mayoral partnerships and give weight to MSA local transport plans.

Mechanisms in the Bill comprising the new statutory role for Mayoral Strategic Authorities (MSAs) could risk being too subject to goodwill. GBR should be required to enter into mayoral partnerships when requested to do so by an MSA whose request meets certain criteria in line with the Long Term Rail …

Government response. The government disagrees with the Committee that the Bill needs to be amended, legislation is not needed to ensure engagement with local leaders on the Long-Term Rail Strategy and the Bill is clear that GBR must have regard to Local …

Department for Transport

Oral evidence sessions

4 sessions

Date	Witnesses
7 Jan 2026	Jeremy Westlake · Network Rail, Lucy Ryan · Department for Transport, Richard Goodman · Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, The Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill CBE · Department for Transport	View ↗
17 Dec 2025	Bill Reeve · Transport Scotland, Fiona Hyslop MSP · The Scottish Government, Jamie Ross · Liverpool City Region, Jason Prince · Urban Transport Group, Mal Drury-Rose · West Midlands Rail Executive, Peter McDonald · The Welsh Government	View ↗
10 Dec 2025	Alex Campbell · Transport Focus, Alex Robertson · Transport Focus, Anthony Smith · Independent Rail Retailers, Ben Plowden · Campaign for Better Transport, David Pitt · SilverRail Technologies UK Ltd, Emma Vogelmann · Transport for All, John Davies · Trainline, Sue Sharp · Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee	View ↗
26 Nov 2025	John Larkinson · Office of Rail and Road, Maggie Simpson OBE · Rail Freight Group, Nick Brooks · AllRail, Stephanie Tobyn · Office of Rail and Road, Steve Montgomery · FirstRail	View ↗

Correspondence

5 letters

Date	Direction	Title
28 Jan 2026	To cttee	Letter from the Minister for Rail, Department for Transport relating to the Rai…
4 Dec 2025	To cttee	Letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales, Welsh Governme…
26 Nov 2025	To cttee	Letter from the Leader of the House relating to the passage and scrutiny of the…
12 Nov 2025	To cttee	Letter from the Secretary of State for Transport relating to the introduction o…
30 Oct 2025	To cttee	Letter from the Chair of the Committee to the Leader of the House relating to t…