Chamber and committees

I will pick up on the point about cost reduction, particularly in relation to new stations, and try to make it brief. It seems that there might be an opportunity to add more new stations to the existing rail network if there was a shift to using modular stations. Sites that have been mentioned to me include Torlundy, Evanton and Newburgh, where lower-cost stations could be brought in without having to build new railway lines. What are your thoughts on that? Do we need more innovation in expanding the rail network?

Robert Sansom, what is the passenger view on ticket offices in the future?

Maybe they are misnamed. They are not ticketing offices; they are station offices, really. That might give us a sense of where things could go.

I am content to move on, unless Kevin Lindsay has something to add.

I will go back to industrial relations. The first panel that we had this morning were union colleagues and we got the strong impression from them that relations had perhaps turned a corner and were improving. Will the witnesses say a bit more about their impressions of industrial relations and whether they need to continue to improve or change?

Okay. Thanks.

What are your plans for ticket offices? Maybe we should just call them station offices, because it is clear that the staff who work there do a lot more than just sell tickets. Where do those plans currently sit? There is widespread concern not just from the rail unions but from passenger groups about ticket office closures or changes to the times that offices are open, and about how that might impact on passenger safety and the passenger experience. We heard from our first panel about antisocial behaviour and how having staffed stations might help with that. Will you give us a rundown on where you are with your plans, which, last year, were quite widely opposed?

I am trying to get a sense of whether a Government decision is overdue, in which case, is it worth revisiting the whole thing again? If things have shifted, is it not better for Government to reconsider where we are now and then come to a decision or do you still want a decision sooner rather than later, based on your current proposals?

An issue relating to the Illegal Migration Bill’s effect on transport workers has been raised with me. It appears that the bill will, in effect, require transport workers to assist with Home Office deportations. Have your members raised that issue with you?

Thank you.