Rail reforms must not dilute competition, warns CPS

Responding to the Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail, Robert Colvile, Director of the CPS, said:

'The Government is right to pursue more flexible ticketing policies, especially in the light of the pandemic. However, the commitment to 'new opportunities for innovators' must include not only preserving but if possible expanding scope for competition within the system.

'In particular, there have been alarming suggestions that the Government will seek to eliminate 'duplication' in terms of open access competition on trunk lines, a policy suggested by the Centre for Policy Studies and endorsed by a Competition and Markets Authority investigation as resulting in lower costs and higher quality services for consumers and taxpayers alike.

'Overall, Britain's railways have improved dramatically since privatisation - now is not the time to take a retrograde step.'

Notes to Editors

• In 'Get Rail Competition Back on Track', by CPS Research Fellow, Tony Lodge shows that the deeper underlying problem with Britain's railways is the near absence of 'open access' on track competition, where two operators run services in competition over similar routes. The report is available here

• In 'British Railways in 2019 – Reform or Renationalise?’, a briefing written ahead of the Williams Review, Conor Walsh explains why simply monopolising the train company and integrating train and track would not solve the issues and damage competition. The briefing is available here

• 'The Truth About Britain's Railways', also by Conor Walsh, highlights that British railways have improved by more than any other European country’s since privatisation. This is available here