- Railways Act 2005
The Railways Act 2005 is a
United Kingdom Act of Parliament concerning the regulatory structure forrailway s in the United Kingdom.Overview
The bill was introduced and published on
25 November 2004 and receivedRoyal Assent on7 April 2005 . The act implemented the institutional changes published in theDepartment for Transport 'sWhite Paper on rail of15 July 2004 , principally:* Abolished the
Strategic Rail Authority (SRA), transferring some of its functions to the Secretary of State, some (consumer protection ones) to theOffice of Rail Regulation , and some to the devolved administrations.
* Reduced the financial jurisdiction of the Office of Rail Regulation, imposing a Treasury-determined cap on its financial powers and requiring theSecretary of State for Transport to specify what he wants in return for the public subsidy which goes into the railway industry.
* EstablishedPassenger Focus as a single national consumer representation body, replacing the geographically separatedRail Passengers Council .
* Set up a new regime for the closure of railway facilities and services.Government defeat
During the final Parliamentary stages of the passage of the Railways Act 2005, the Government sustained a defeat in the House of Lords over an amendment which would have protected passenger and train operators against a diminution of infrastructure quality or performance - or being held rigidly to their contracts for the provision of railway services which assumed no such diminution - if the
Secretary of State for Transport restricted funds available toNetwork Rail . However, the amendment was reversed the same day in the House of Commons with a much weaker provision substituted for it. The House of Lords did not insist on their original amendment, and the legislation was passed without the protections which the train operators needed. Criticis regarded this as an unjustified interference in an inter-dependent contractual matrix, contrary to the legitimate expectations of private investors in the railway.External links
* [http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2005/20050014.htm OPSI text of the act]
* [http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_railways/documents/page/dft_railways_032962.hcsp Summary of key points]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.