Sixth Report - Trains fit for the future?

The government welcomes the report, agrees on the need for decarbonisation, highlights past electrification efforts, and states that its forthcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan and the new Great British Railways will provide a long-term strategy and clearer accountability for achieving net zero in rail.

The government partially agrees, stating they are developing a Traction Decarbonisation Plan (TDP) and Rail Environment Policy (REP) to set their long-term strategic direction for decarbonising the railway, with a comprehensive environment plan to be published by 2022. They do not explicitly reaffirm the commitment to withdraw all diesel-only trains by 2040.

The government "partially agrees" with the implied need to address delays, stating it is developing a Transport Decarbonisation Plan (TDP) and Rail Environment Policy (REP), and will publish a comprehensive environment plan for the rail network by 2022.

The government partially agrees, stating they are developing a Traction Decarbonisation Plan (TDP) and Rail Environment Policy (REP) document to set a long-term strategic direction, with a comprehensive environment plan to be published by 2022. They note the Network Rail-led Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy (TDNS) provides a vision for the technological mix.

The government partially agrees, indicating they are developing a Traction Decarbonisation Plan (TDP) and Rail Environment Policy (REP) to set their long-term strategic direction for decarbonising the railway and will publish a comprehensive environment plan by 2022.

The government accepts the recommendation and commits to working closely with other departments, including the Treasury, to secure necessary funding for the decarbonisation policy to be set out in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan.

The government partially agrees, stating they are developing a Traction Decarbonisation Plan (TDP) and Rail Environment Policy (REP) to set a long-term strategic direction, with a comprehensive environment plan to be published by 2022, and notes the TDNS vision for technological mix.

The government partially agrees, stating that the Department is developing a Transport Decarbonisation Plan and Rail Environment Policy to set a strategic direction for decarbonisation, and that Network Rail's TDNS and further analysis will ensure affordability and value for money, thereby aiming to avoid past costly mistakes.

The government "partially agrees", stating it has already introduced robust financial mechanisms like the RNEP process following past cost challenges. It notes a review of financial governance is underway within Network Rail and commits to continuing to enhance processes where necessary to ensure lessons are learned.

The government partially agrees, stating that robust financial mechanisms including RNEP were already introduced, and while agreeing in principle to financial transparency, a review of financial governance is underway within Network Rail, with commitments to continue enhancing processes where necessary.

The government partially agrees, committing to endeavour to deliver a 30-year pipeline of electrification schemes but will ensure proper development through the RNEP process before committing to individual projects, balancing certainty for the industry with affordability and value for money.

The government "partially agrees", committing to "endeavour to deliver" a visible pipeline of electrification schemes over the next 30 years. However, it qualifies this by emphasizing that schemes must be properly developed through the RNEP process to ensure affordability and value for money before commitment.

The government partially agrees, committing to endeavour to deliver a 30-year pipeline of electrification schemes but will not start immediately, prioritising proper development through the RNEP process to ensure affordability and value for money.

The government agrees to proactively monitor Network Rail and ORR's exploration of third-rail electrification extension, and is funding a project by the Rail Safety and Standards Board to investigate safety improvements for third rail electrification.

The government partially agrees, providing an interim "no regret" electrification analysis as an annex, but clarifies it is superseded and full details on prioritised schemes, costs, and timeframes will be published through the updated RNEP process.

The government partially agrees, stating they are developing a Traction Decarbonisation Plan (TDP) and Rail Environment Policy (REP) to set a long-term strategic direction for decarbonising the railway, with a comprehensive environment plan to be published by 2022. They note the need for further analysis on technology mix.

The government agrees with the recommendation and is actively making the case across government to ensure hydrogen trains are included at an appropriate level in the forthcoming national Hydrogen Strategy.

The government accepts the recommendation, committing to work with BEIS to support a domestic battery industry and detailing its existing £318 million investment in the Faraday Battery Challenge, which aims to establish the UK as a leader in battery science, research, and manufacturing.

The government partially agrees, stating they are developing a Traction Decarbonisation Plan (TDP) and Rail Environment Policy (REP) document to set a long-term strategy, with a comprehensive environment plan to be published by 2022. They acknowledge the need for further analysis as technologies evolve to ensure appropriate decarbonisation solutions.

The government accepts the recommendation, stating that the TDNS recommends regional assessments of alternative technologies and that Great British Railways will be well-placed to consider all options and update the analysis periodically as technologies develop.

The government notes the recommendation, recognising the importance of freight decarbonisation without distorting competitiveness, and commits to setting out further details in the forthcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan and a cross-modal freight strategy.

The government notes the recommendation and will set out further details on freight decarbonisation, including a pathway to net zero, in the forthcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan and cross-modal freight strategy, rather than committing to a specific target now.

The government partially agrees, highlighting existing significant R&D support and plans to simplify funding and improve collaboration under the Williams-Shapps White Paper. Great British Railways will become the primary public funder of R&D, aligning funding with long-term investment strategies and private sector innovators.

The government partially agrees, stating significant R&D support is ongoing and will be simplified through the Williams-Shapps White Paper. Great British Railways will become the primary public funder of R&D, with closer alignment to long-term investment strategies and stronger links with private sector innovators.

The government commits to removing the remaining 3% (525 vehicles) of non-compliant trains from service as soon as possible, with 133 of these only being used when coupled to compliant vehicles. Operators are prioritising compliant trains and taking operational mitigations.

The Department is committed to ensuring accessibility, stating 97% of trains are compliant and the remaining 3% will be removed from service or used only with compliant vehicles. Operators are prioritizing compliant trains and implementing operational mitigations, but the response does not explicitly detail sanctions for non-compliance.