Transport Secretary has today confirmed that
the Abellio ScotRail contract will come to an end early.
The current franchise agreement requires Scottish Ministers and
Abellio to revisit the level of government subsidy provided for
the remaining 5 years of the contract and to determine whether
additional subsidy should be paid. This is a process known as
rebasing.
Following considerable analysis and careful consideration of the
information provided by Abellio ScotRail, Ministers have decided
that the significant increase in Government subsidy proposed
would not secure delivery of commensurate benefits to passengers,
communities and the economy.
Ministers have therefore served a No Rebasing Notice on Abellio
ScotRail. As a result of this decision, existing Government
subsidy levels remain in place and the franchise will come to an
end early, currently expected to be March 2022.
Mr Matheson said:
“Our rail network is of significant social, economic and
environmental value to the people of Scotland, and Ministers must
ensure that the services we secure are high performing,
financially sustainable and offer value for money.
“We currently provide around two thirds of the running costs for
our railway and it is essential that this is sustainable going
forward. Our record investment in rail is already delivering more
seats, more trains and more stations.
“Any changes to the level of subsidy paid by the government must
deliver new benefits for passengers and taxpayers and whilst
there have been improvements in recent years, the proposed
changes were not sufficient to justify additional subsidy.
“Of course, the Scottish Government must plan for the future of
our rail services, beyond 2022 and work is already underway to
examine the options open to us in this regard.
“Longer term, this Government has already made clear its position
that the current franchising regime, which is a matter reserved
to the UK government, has failed and it is widely accepted that
the rail industry, as a whole, must embrace reform.
“The best way to deliver this is through the transfer of all rail
powers, which would allow us to work together to find the right
solution for our railways in future – properly integrated and
fully aligned with the public interest and Scottish Government
policy.”
The rail industry is currently awaiting the outcome of the
Williams Rail Review which is led by the UK Government.
