Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 20
20
Acknowledged
Lack of consensus exists regarding GBR's 'guiding mind' role and central versus devolved authority.
Conclusion
We asked the Department for its views on the current commentary around GBR and the balance between it acting as a guiding or directing mind. The Department said it is important to find the right balance between the guiding mind who is guiding but also who is prepared to stand up and take the accountability to fix those things. Network Rail’s view was that, in an increasingly devolved United Kingdom, the idea of a central, directing mind telling people in Scotland, Wales, London and other mayoral authorities what sort of rail service they can have would not be acceptable.44
Government Response Summary
The government states its ambition is to set the long-term strategy and priorities for the railway, with Great British Railways (GBR) acting as a “directing mind” focused on improving the rail network and the passenger experience.
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
2.3 Going forward, the government’s ambition is to set the long-term strategy and priorities for the railway, with a new arm’s length body, Great British Railways (GBR), acting as a “directing mind” focused on improving the rail network and the passenger experience. GBR will be incentivised by targets and performance criteria set by the Secretary of State to deliver a reliable, safe, efficient, accessible, affordable and quality network for passengers. Alongside this, a new passenger watchdog – the Passenger Standards Authority (PSA) – will independently monitor standards and champion improvement in service performance against a range of measures.