Member

A statement of the Bill’s primary purpose would not add any significant costs, place extra demands on the Secretary of State, or impose any new burdens on Great British Railways. It would, however, provide a foundation on which her decisions might build, and act as a guiding principle whenever she uses powers under the Act. As my noble Friend in the other place argued, a requirement on the Secretary of State to improve passenger standards at every turn should not be controversial, and is surely not something with which she disagrees, so I am surprised that she seeks to excise the statement from the Bill, and I urge Members from across the House to vote against the Government motion to disagree.