All UK policy articles
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Rail Business UKRail Partners to be wound-up in the face of nationalisation
UK: The Rail Partners association of train operating company owning groups has decided to ‘wind down’ in April 2025, with the planned nationalisation of passenger operators leaving it without a future role. Rail Partners was spun out of the Rail Delivery Group in 2021 to provide advocacy ...
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Rail Business UKTrain operators’ revenue protection to be reviewed following ‘egregious’ prosecutions
UK: Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haigh has asked the Office of Rail & Road to undertake an independent review of the way train operators tackle suspected fare evasion.
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Rail Business UKRail Minister Hendy strikes conciliatory tone as he backs ‘fresh start’ for UK rail
UK: Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy struck an upbeat tone in his keynote address at the Railway Industry Association’s annual conference on November 6, promising ‘a new start for rail’ and confirming that High Speed 2 ‘will go to [London] Euston’. Hendy said it was a ...
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Rail Business UKLong-term rolling stock strategy aims to end supply chain boom-and-bust
UK: A long-term rolling stock investment strategy will ‘end the boom-and-bust approach’ and ‘give the supply chain the certainty it needs to plan and invest’, according to Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haigh. Speaking at the launch of Rail Campus Derby on October 17, Haigh ...
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Rail Business UKHS2 to Euston and commitments to ongoing projects in Labour’s first budget
UK: Funding for the construction of the High Speed 2 tunnels from Old Oak Common to London Euston, and commitments to the ongoing Transpennine Route Upgrade and to take East West Rail to Cambridge were included in the budget presented by Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel ...
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Rail Business UKHouse of Commons Transport Committee members appointed
UK: The House of Commons has formally appointed the membership of the Transport Committee, which scrutinises the Department for Transport and investigates matters of public concern where there is a need for accountability through parliament. NameParty Ruth Cadbury (Chair) Labour ...
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail to be abolished under rail reforms as Haigh rejects ‘BR reboot’
UK: Great British Railways will ‘will not be British Rail Rebooted or Network Rail 2·0’, Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haigh has insisted as she gave an update on the rail reform programme.
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Rail Business UKViewpoint: Do not rush UK rail reform
Given the scale of the task, the government should resist the temptation to push through hasty reform of the UK rail sector, argues Dominic Booth, Chief Executive of Transport UK Group.
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Rail Business UKGovernment announces measures to address ‘dire’ HS2 project delivery
UK: Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haig has announced measures which aim to ensure the costs of the High Speed 2 programme ‘are brought under control’, including an independent review of governance. The incentives of the main HS2 contractors are also being reviewed, which the ...
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Rail Business UKICE sets out the lessons to be learned from High Speed 2
UK: The Institution of Civil Engineers has published a report setting out lessons it says need to be learned from the decision to cancel the northern phases of the High Speed 2 project. The cancellation of HS2 Northern’s leg — learning lessons draws on interviews and ...
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Rail Business UKNo plans for a British rail ‘climate ticket’
UK: Rail Business UK understands that the government has no plans to introduce a subscription-based ticket offering unlimited rail travel, as has been proposed in a report produced for Greenpeace by the Greengauge 21 think tank. ‘Across Europe, nations are adopting a Climate Card, offering public ...
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Rail Business UKTarget the worst-performing train operators first, says Transport UK
UK: The government should target the worst performing passenger train operators rather than simply use contract expiry dates for taking operations into public ownership, according to Dominic Booth, CEO of Transport UK. Transport UK — a management buy-out of Dutch state operator Nederlandse Spoorwegen’s former rail ...
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NewsArriva proposes five changes ‘to fix Britain’s railways’
UK: Arriva has published a five-step plan to ‘fix Britain’s railways’ by first stabilising the network and then unlocking growth to increase usage, support public finances and drive improvements for passengers. The Accelerating the Government’s Ambition to Fix Britain’s Railways report published on September 18 sets ...
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Rail Business UKRuth Cadbury elected Chair of the Transport Select Committee
UK: Labour MP for Brentford & Isleworth Ruth Cadbury has been elected as Chair of the House of Commons Transport Select Committee for the 2024 parliament. ‘Working cross-party, this committee will continue to champion the sector and consumers across the country’, she said following the election ...
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Rail Business UKRIA calls for 2024 budget to invest in rail to drive future economic growth
UK: Chancellor Rachel Reeves is urged ‘to see UK rail as an investment in the economy rather than just a cost’ in the Railway Industry Association’s submission to the Treasury ahead of the budget on October 30. RIA calls on the Chancellor to bring forward a ...
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Rail Business UKHaigh gives the go-ahead for Shadow Great British Railways
UK: Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haigh has given the go-ahead for the creation of a Shadow Great British Railways, ahead of the future primary legislation which will be needed to create Great British Railways as an arm’s length body overseeing both train services and ...
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Rail Business UKBill to take passenger train operations into the public sector makes progress
UK: The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill received its third reading in the House of Commons on September 3, as the first major piece of legislation to pass through the Commons under the recently-elected Labour government. The bill would end the award of passenger train ...
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Rail Business UKTrack access charge waiver aims to attract new freight to rail
UK: Infrastructure manager Network Rail is to waive track access charges for new flows in an effort to encourage new freight traffic to rail.
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Rail Business UKDouble rail’s modal share in a decade, urges Labour transport review
UK: The Rail & Urban Transport Review led by former Siemens UK CEO Jürgen Maier has published a report into at how rail infrastructure could be delivered ‘better, faster and more cost effectively’.
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Rail Business UKWelsh government sets out rail reform priorities
UK: The Welsh government’s priorities for rail reform have been discussed in a meeting between Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Transport & North Wales Ken Skates and UK government Rail Minister Lord Hendy. Priorities include: developing a ‘locally driven and empowered’ business unit for Great British ...